Vol. 462 No. 4
82 Mr. Martin asked the Minister for Education the precise date on which officials in her Department discovered that a major error had occurred in the marking of the 1995 leaving certificate art examination following receipt of a letter from a parent of a candidate attending the Ursuline Convent in Sligo on or about 21 November 1995. [4764/96]
I am informed that on or about 20 November, my Department received a 'phone call from the mother of a candidate from Ursuline College during which she requested a reply to a letter which she had written in October regarding her daughter's art result. As this letter could not be located, the mother was requested to send on a copy. A copy of the letter, dated 7 October, was then forwarded, together with a covering letter dated 21 November. This correspondence was received in my Department on or about 22 November.
The matter was then investigated within the examinations branch of my Department and top management were informed of the position on 12 December.
The manner in which my Department responded to the information received on or about 22 November and any question of delay in responding to it are matters which are being addressed by Price Waterhouse as part of its ongoing inquiry.
