I take the points that have been made. The long-established system of allocating teachers in the education system has been in place for many years.
I understand that the appeal is being heard these days. The independent process of the appeal is important. It is also important to have the integrity of that appeal process not just for here, but for across the education system. It is right and proper that we wait for t…
TDs / Michael Moynihan
Michael Moynihan
Minister of State at the Department of Education and Youth
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
5
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
133,123
words spoken in the chamber
133,123 as a minister, 0 as a TD
426
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
4
topics asked about
Across 3 departments
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
What they ask about
The subject headings the Oireachtas filed their questions under.
Who they ask
The departments their questions were addressed to.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Questions asked 5 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 382 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 0 | 27 |
| March 2025 | 0 | 3 |
| April 2025 | 1 | 25 |
| May 2025 | 1 | 5 |
| June 2025 | 0 | 15 |
| July 2025 | 0 | 19 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 2 | 4 |
| October 2025 | 0 | 18 |
| November 2025 | 0 | 10 |
| December 2025 | 0 | 42 |
| January 2026 | 1 | 12 |
| February 2026 | 0 | 34 |
| March 2026 | 0 | 8 |
| April 2026 | 0 | 26 |
| May 2026 | 0 | 23 |
| June 2026 | 0 | 30 |
| July 2026 | 0 | 18 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 0 | 6 |
| October 2026 | 0 | 57 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 349 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Asked about similar topics
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Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Cork North-West 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister of State at the Department of Education 29 January 2025 to 1 May 2025
- office Minister of State at the Department of Education and Youth 2 May 2025 to now
As I understand it, it is being held this week. I do not have the exact date, so I do not know if that means yesterday, today or tomorrow. It is important that we wait for the outcome of that appeal before commenting further.
For 2027, the Government has prioritised ensuring schools across the country, including in Kildare North, have the necessary resources to support children with special educational needs in the setting that best meets their needs. Since 2020, over 2,400 new special classes have been provided. There are now more than 4,300 special classes available in our primary and post-primary schools, with 180 special classes acros…
When one lays out the figures, by any yardstick, the amount of investment in special education is huge. When you drill down into it all and fight for the funding at budget level - both the Minister, Deputy Naughton, and I fought very hard earlier this year to increase funding - yet there is still a small cohort of students outside not getting the education they deserve, you challenge yourself to do more.
Over the pa…
The Deputy mentioned Stepping Stones. I will get an update.
On the Deputy's point about having special education across the system, I compliment Kildare in particular. On a visit we made to Kildare, including Maynooth, both of the second level schools in question were top of the range in this regard. There is commentary that we should look around the world at this, but those schools are leaders.
It is no longer acc…
I thank the Deputy. The school transport system is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education and Youth. The National Council for Special Education acts in an advisory role to the Department on the suitability of placements for children with special educational needs. Under the terms of the school transport scheme for children with special educational needs, the Department…
It is important that, when discussing education for children with special educational needs, we are providing the most appropriate services. As with the previous question from Deputy Ó Fearghaíl, we must consider the time that children with additional needs are travelling on buses. It is vital that we continue to reduce the time that they are on the buses or whatever transport that is provided for them. Children with…
We are spending a lot of money on the school transport system. For the 2026-27 school year, it will be somewhere in the region of over €670 million. We have a number of flashpoints across the country that are very difficult to resolve or where we are unable to resolve issues for pupils and get them tickets for buses to mainstream classes and so forth. We are looking at how best we can integrate into the public transp…
I thank the Deputy. Both the Minister, Deputy Naughton, and I wish to acknowledge the outstanding work carried out by approximately 2,000 youth workers across the country. The youth sector delivers high-quality youth work and non-formal education opportunities to approximately 450,000 young people aged between ten and 24 years of age. Within this broader context, over 90,000 young people participate in the 258 UBU Yo…
As regards the allocation, we got an extra €7 million in the budget in relation to youth services. Quite rightly, we commend the work being done across the country by youth services. In many instances, they are reaching young people who are very vulnerable and giving them the best possible path in life or the best possible opportunity to reach their potential in life. An awful lot of great work is being done by youth…
As the Deputy can see, we have increased funding this year for youth services. We have continued to do so quite considerably over recent years. We are investing in youth services and we acknowledge the work being done across the services. It is a hugely important piece of the Department. Youth services are now back with the Department of education, as they were going back many years. It is important that that role co…
I understand that this is an issue on which Deputy McGrath has spent a huge amount of time, working with the school communities.
The school building project at Owenabue Educate Together National School represents an important element of the Department of education's overall school building programme. The major project is being delivered under the Department's accelerated delivery of architectural planning and tender…
I will go back to the Department. It is crucial that stage 1 be closed out. I give a commitment to go back to the Department today and make sure that we are working on that. The Deputy has demonstrated quite clearly in conversations and correspondence with us the challenges within the school community to work effectively within the present accommodation. I know that the school is a huge advocate for special education…
The Deputy's points about the progress are well made. The site has been identified. We now have to make sure that it moves speedily through the Department, given the concerns outlined. I will go back to the planning and building unit and relay the concerns the Deputy has spoken about, not just on the floor of the Dáil, but in conversation and correspondence with me.
It is important that we close out stage 1 in a tim…
As Minister of State with responsibility for special education and inclusion, I have met with special school communities across the country, including meeting directly with school principals, and I have heard at first hand the experiences of schools and their families.
I am very much aware of the additional challenges our special schools face compared with their mainstream counterparts. In response to this, a number…
I am acutely aware of this issue. Last spring and early summer, I met with the principals of all of the special schools in five locations across the country to hear at first hand what the challenges are. I am acutely aware of the challenges being faced. This year alone, we increased the budget for special education from €3 billion to €3.8 billion. We are investing a considerable amount of money in specialised educati…
We have made huge investments in special schools. We opened four special schools last year. One of these was under the auspices of one of the religious organisations so we are going one way or the other. Many patron bodies are coming forward and we are engaging. I take the Deputy's fundamental point. Many times, we and other states have been criticised in respect of our education and health systems. It has been said …
The school building project for St. Joseph's Patrician College, the Bish, in Galway represents an important element of the Department of Education and Youth's overall building programme. This project is devolved to the Le Chéile Schools Trust for delivery. The project will deliver a new purpose-built school building on a new site to accommodate a long-term projected enrolment of over 1,000 post-primary students and w…
I think that I answered the Deputy's previous question on this as well. I assure the Deputy that both I and the Minister, Deputy Naughton, are acutely aware of it. There has been engagement with the school authorities. This is a huge investment in education within Galway. I know that Department officials have been in contact with the school in relation to a few issues, but we are moving forward with it, and it will b…
I thank Deputy Crowe for his question. To give some background, the Department of Education and Youth has been engaging with school communities and school patron bodies throughout the country through the primary school survey, which is the largest of its kind. It is examining the vision for the future of primary school education across the system, including, for example, whether schools want to change patronage or ha…
As the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach will agree, our constituencies are alike. That is why I spent so many happy times in Clare during August.
Returning to the points raised, we have engaged very thoroughly. There is a dedicated and effective team within the Department of education looking at the applications from schools that want to change from English-medium to Irish-medium education.
In the programme for Government a…
I congratulate the junior certificate students who got their results today and wish them the very best of luck. It is one step on the journey through school. I wish them the very best today and into the future in the decisions they make whether it is into transition year or on to fifth year.
Over the past year and a half, I have met with multiple children, families and school communities across the country and have …
I welcome the students. I look forward to their analysis of how we understand government. It might be important for every citizen.
I thank the Deputies who spoke on the Railway Safety Bill. They gave informative insights not just into railway safety but into other issues. I offer my sincere sympathies to the family of Eoin Doyle on their tragic loss. Many Deputies across the House have raised genuine concerns in rel…
I move:
That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Transport pursuant to Standing Orders 103(2)(b) and 188(1).
I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I will go through the format first and then come to the points he raised. The matter of infrastructure investment to support road safety as well as the quality of life for people who rely on the N70 is an important one. The Minister for Transport has responsibility for overall policy and Exchequer funding but TII, the national roads authority, and the local authori…