I welcome the Minister of State. I raise the matter of the need for the Minister for Education and Science to explain the reason for the delay in the purchase of a building site for the new Charleville national school, Tullamore, County Offaly because of my concern having been approached by parents of students attending the schools there. There appears to be undue delay on the matter.
In December 1999 the Department requested those involved in the Office of Public Works with the purchase of lands for schools to purchase a suitable site in Tullamore for the school. It is now mid-May 2003 and the site has not yet been purchased. The proposed site of 1.5 acres is the property of the Church of Ireland which requires the school urgently.
The Department has spent the years since 1999 trying to buy the site. Why has it taken 3.5 years to try to negotiate the sale of 1.5 acres of land in Tullamore? Is the Department or the Office of Public Works serious about the purchase of the site and are the landowners serious about its sale? Those suffering are the students who must attend an outdated and dilapidated school in Tullamore. They need a new school urgently. I hope the Minister of State is in a position to tell me that the matter has progressed.
Over the last 3.5 years an amount of property was bought for schools around the country. It puzzles me and the people of Tullamore affected by the delay as to the reason it has taken so long to purchase the site. I hope the Minister of State will give us some indication as to when it will be purchased. I am puzzled also that planning permission has already been granted.
We cannot understand the reason there has been such a delay in the purchase of the site. If there is a particular reason it has not been purchased, I hope the person responsible will come out into the open and tell us whether it is the seller who requires more than the Department is offering or the Department which is not prepared to pay the price requested. If that is the situation, we should look for another site as soon as possible. I look forward to a favourable reply from the Minister of State.