The school building programme for 2003 has been published and full details with regard to individual projects are available on my Department's website at www.education.ie. Given the level of financial commitments to be met from projects already under construction, my Department does not envisage that it will in a position during this year to allow further large-scale projects, including that at St. Mary's Convent of Mercy secondary school, Naas, County Kildare, to commence architectural planning.
The timing of when the project at St. Mary's can commence architectural planning is dependent on the financial allocation for 2004 and subsequent years and the competing priorities for that funding by reference to the published criteria for prioritising large-scale projects.