asked the Minister for Education if he will now sanction the provision of a new vocational school in Killenaule, County Tipperary, in view of the long delay since it was first proposed and the inadequate accommodation and sanitary conditions in the existing school.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - County Tipperary School.
31.
This matter is being considered and a sample schedule of accommodation for the new building is being sent to the chief executive officer for the observations of the vocational education committee.
As the Parliamentary Secretary is aware this matter has been under consideration since 1971 when it was first decided to build a new school. I understand that since 1973 a site for this school was purchased and that the Minister was made aware of that. Does the Parliamentary Secretary not acknowledge an immediate decision, as requested by the parents, staff and pupils, should be made?
The Department will be sending a sample schedule of accommodation to the CEO for the observations of the vocational education committee and it is to be hoped that the committee will process this as quickly as possible. I can assure the House that every effort will be made to ensure that this project proceeds quickly, having regard to the extent of existing commitments and the availability of financial resources.
Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that the existing accommodation comprises the three original rooms built in 1936, five mobile rooms and seven pre-fab classrooms? Is he aware that the Minister sanctioned the leaving certificate cycle for this school? If the Minister is to be consistent he should recognise that a school that has been under consideration for years must be provided with reasonable accommodation. When will this survey be completed and when can we expect, having regard to the overall financial and other problems, to see a building start in Killenaule? The site for this was purchased in 1973.
The Deputy will realise that there are many schools anxious to get buildings started and the commencement of any of these depends on the availability of financial resources. I have assured the House that maximum care will be taken to bring this project forward in the light of the availability of resources. It is realised that there is a problem and that as the Deputy said, there are many prefabricated classrooms in use here. That is not something that is desirable or something the Department would wish to see continue indefinitely. It is something we are seeking to redress in common with seeking to redress similar problems which exist in many schools elsewhere.
Will the Parliamentary Secretary ensure that the moneys available from the capital budget which were not spent last year will be spent this year in this needy area? If the moneys are there it does not make sense for the Parliamentary Secretary to talk about having regard to the share out of available resources. What was provided was not applied.
At this stage I cannot give any sort of blanket assurance in relation to the use of the capital moneys provided for this year. This matter will have to be considered by the Minister. I have already assured the House that we recognise the seriousness of the problem at Killenaule and that all steps will be taken. I have indicated the steps that have already been taken towards doing something about the problem.
That is not enough.
That concludes Question Time.
The next question on the Order Paper for consideration is that which immediately followed Question No. 28 on Tuesday's Order Paper. I should like to know how you arranged to put in Questions Nos. 29, 30 and 31 between those two questions in the meantime. Question No. 32 on today's Order Paper immediately followed Question No. 28 on Tuesday's Order Paper but three other questions have stolen in between in the meantime.
I can only tell the Deputy that I will ask the office to look into the matter. I have no knowledge of the position.
I was waiting for this question.
The Deputy should take it up at the party meeting.
If the House wishes we could dispose of this question now.
Could we have the agreement of the House to deal with it?
If the House so agrees, certainly. I will call Deputy Lalor's question.
I am not pressing for it. I am trying to find out how other questions took priority over this one?
There is an established practice in the office and I am sure they will explain to the Deputy why this occurred.
It relates to the responsibilities of the Minister and the Parliamentary Secretary.
We did not have the Minister. We had the Parliamentary Secretary for all the questions.
May we deal with the question?
I put in my question for written reply but I could not get it that way because my colleague had a question in for oral answer on the same issue.
If the House is agreeable I would like the reply to Question No. 33 now with your permission.
This means skipping Question No. 32 in the name of Deputy Paddy Lalor.
No. They are both the same.
Question No. 32.