I am aware of this issue because it has been raised previously, including by the Deputy. The information we have in the Department very clearly shows approximately 1,000 pupils move outside Dublin 15 on a daily basis to go to schools in the surrounding areas. This is obviously putting pressure on those schools. The view is the development of the new school, which I know is temporarily placed elsewhere, and moving it …
TDs / Helen McEntee
Helen McEntee
Minister for DefenceMinister for Foreign Affairs and Trade
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
0
questions asked
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them
245,309
words spoken in the chamber
245,286 as a minister, 23 as a TD
321
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
Members of the Government answer parliamentary questions rather than ask them, so this page lists none of theirs.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Contributions to debates 806 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Contributions |
|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 58 |
| March 2025 | 1 |
| April 2025 | 69 |
| May 2025 | 45 |
| June 2025 | 32 |
| July 2025 | 38 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 8 |
| October 2025 | 13 |
| November 2025 | 74 |
| December 2025 | 40 |
| January 2026 | 2 |
| February 2026 | 28 |
| March 2026 | 32 |
| April 2026 | 2 |
| May 2026 | 161 |
| June 2026 | 34 |
| July 2026 | 65 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 50 |
| October 2026 | 54 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 727 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Meath East 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fine Gael 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister for Education 23 January 2025 to 1 May 2025
- office Minister for Education and Youth 2 May 2025 to 18 November 2025
- office Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade 18 November 2025 to now
- office Minister for Defence 18 November 2025 to now
I thank Deputy Boland for raising this question. I acknowledge that she has prioritised this with me and wants to ensure that every child, parent and teacher in her constituency has the resources, supports and indeed the appropriate school buildings he or she requires in the years ahead. I am absolutely committed to working with her and all of the schools in that regard.
My role in this Department, working with the …
If the Deputies want to send on individual projects, I can follow up to see at what stages they are. It is important to stress that there is record investment going into school buildings. We have 3,000 primary schools and 700 post-primary schools. The priority and focus always has to be to make sure, where additional accommodation is required, that we do this first, if an extension is required. I fully accept that so…
I would be happy to see some of these schools with the Deputy. She touched on the importance of not forgetting that the more we invest in schools now, the less they will need later on. New summer works and a climate programme have been announced and will be rolled out. It is important to make sure we are investing in changes to the buildings themselves that will provide efficiencies but that will also make sure that …
I look forward to working with the Deputy on this project and many others. As she knows, the Department approved the additional school accommodation project for St. Brigids School Cabinteely. The project is devolved for delivery to the school authority and a design team has been appointed to progress the project through the necessary architectural stages of design, statutory approvals, procurement and construction. T…
There are often different reasons projects are delayed. It is not always the fault of the Department but there are often design, planning or funding issues. It is important to make sure that funding is managed throughout the year. There are only so many projects that can be progressed at a certain time. The focus and priority is always where additional accommodation is needed. More than 100,000 places have brought on…
-----it sets out timelines for the different stages and how long they should take.
We could look at putting a system in place on the engagement that would then take place with schools when they go beyond the timeline.
This is a commonly occurring theme. I am sorry.
Insofar as possible, where there are new builds or where schools have to be moved, the Department always attempts to keep some of the play space and to make sure it is not completely taken. The Department also ensures play areas are part and parcel of the development of new builds, be it PE halls inside the school or covered areas for children to be able to use in bad weather or if they do not have outdoor space. It …
I thank the Deputy for raising this question. Reform of the leaving certificate senior cycle is the right thing to do. This is something that will benefit students. Nobody I have spoken to, including those who have concerns or who requested that this be delayed, has said we should not progress this, because everybody acknowledges it is the right thing to do. That is why I am committed to ensuring this is delivered an…
There is much more in train, which I will outline. A significant amount of work is already under way in that regard.
This is not accelerated. This is something that was committed to ten years ago and it has taken until now to get to the point where it is going to start in September. Given the momentum I have mentioned, it is important we make sure it starts but that we support teachers, unions and students in making sure it happens in the best way possible and that students benefit from it.
A number of things have been done such a…
-----they use it in the most appropriate way, and that they learn as well when they are using it.
I am absolutely committed to working with teachers and their unions to ensure we get this right. Today, following weeks of engagement with all the unions, I invited the ASTI and the TUI to engage intensively to see what more I can do to support them. Everything I outlined here, from the training and funding that is being provided, the papers that have been outlined, the further training that will be provided, the gui…
I thank the Deputy. While the provision of clinical therapy supports to children is the responsibility of the HSE, it is the Government’s ambition to make sure therapies are provided in schools. This was committed to in the programme for Government and it is to build on the work being done through the Department of Education, with a number of teams already in place within our schools through the education therapy sup…
While I cannot give the Deputy a timeline for the doubling of places, I know it is being worked on directly by the Ministers, Deputies Lawless and Carroll MacNeill. The more quickly it can happen, the more quickly we can fill our places overall.
The change on qualifications is work that has just started, so the focus and priority have been on outlining what the therapy service will look like and how we can progress …
This is about building capacity and the thing that has come to me most in recent weeks, when engaging with parents and children about what they want, is that they want the place that is most appropriate for them, although that can be different for every young person and student. It might be a special school, a special classroom in a mainstream school or a mainstream place with additional supports. In rolling out the …
I thank the Deputy for raising the matter. The school transport 2030 report, which was published in early 2024, marks the largest review of the school transport scheme since it was established in 1967. We are committed to working to achieve the report’s recommendations of expanding access to the scheme in order that an additional 100,000 pupils can be carried by 2030 and to continue to improve the scheme in order tha…
I thank both Deputies. I acknowledge this is very stressful for many parents, families and children. It is an issue we are all dealing with. I am dealing with it in my constituency as well. I refer to where there is no particular bus route in place or where parents are looking to see how the criteria might change and how soon we can implement it. While I cannot give the Deputies all those details now, I can say all t…
What I can say is we are working on things now. While I cannot set out now whether there will be changes or what possible changes might take place this year, I can say the pilots are under way and we are evaluating them. We are also looking at other potential measures that might be applied for this coming year. This must depend on the resources available. There is a very clear commitment in the programme for Governme…
I stand in support of this motion of confidence in our Ceann Comhairle. It is hugely regrettable that we are faced with this situation in the House this evening - a motion that has come about because of the prolonged attempts by Opposition to obstruct this Dáil and the Government from getting on with their business. Every single Member of this House was democratically elected back in November. This Government, albeit…
Is mian liom mo chuid ama a roinnt le mo chomhghleacaí, an Teachta Ward. Gabhaim buíochas leis na Teachtaí as an rún atá curtha chun cinn acu agus tá áthas orm an deis a fháil labhairt leis an Teach faoin ábhar tábhachtach seo.
It is timely, with Seachtain na Gaeilge in full swing, to remind the House that we should all endeavour to use the Irish language insofar as we can and as is possible. I intend to do so mysel…
I look forward to working with all colleagues, particularly in this area. I thank the Deputy for asking this question as it is an important and live issue, in particular for students who will sit the leaving certificate in the years ahead. It is for this reason that, in the last few weeks, I have met nearly all the unions and representative bodies representing teachers, principals, schools in general, boards of manag…
I think our stakeholders have outlined a number of things clearly. First, they want to ensure teachers feel appropriately trained and equipped because they want to ensure they are giving their best and students get the best outcomes. A number of training programmes have been developed and delivered already and my intention is to try to intensify that and provide even more supports and resources for teachers.
Second,…