Building programmes sanctioned for more than half a dozen local schools are under “severe threat” due to the slashing of almost €40 million from the school building budget.
That’s according to Fine Gael senator and Seanad education spokesperson, Fidelma Healy Eames who has slammed the “dearth of tangible solutions” in the Budget to meet critical education needs.
“Last October it was teacher cuts affecting the quality of pupil learning outcomes. Now it is cuts to the capital budget after Minister O’Keeffe had promised he would make a difference in this area. Capital expenditure for the school building programme for this year has taken a serious hit in the Supplementary Budget ’09, with this year’s allocation being slashed from €652.9 million to just over €613million. With €40 million less now in the pot many schools which have already have been sanctioned for building programmes are now perilously at risk.”
Among those are Maree national school, Oranmore, the boys and girls primary schools, Oranmore, Clarinbridge NS, Gaelscoil de hÍde, Oranmore, Scoil Mhuire, Moycullen and Colaiste na Coiribe, Galway city.
The Oranmore senator says a badly needed new primary school, which has been approved under the building programme for Doughiska (a parish from which 1,000 primary school children leave every morning to attend neighbouring schools ) is now likely to be put on the back-burner.
“Moreover the future of a new Clifden Community School now hangs worryingly in the balance while the current building remains in a chronic state of disrepair. Parents and staff in Clifden are understandably concerned.”
She says “hacking away” at school building resources characterises the “short-sightedness and short-termism” of this Budget.
“The Government estimates that unemployment will reach in excess of 15 per cent - that is more than half a million people by next year. If there is to be any attempt to deal with this catastrophe the focus should be on labour intensive projects as a means of creating employment. The school building programme is one such unique opportunity to create jobs.”
The Fine Gael senator is highly critical of the Government’s method of dealing with Ireland’s economic woes by taxing workers heavily.
“Its refusal to implement a job creation strategy and to step up the school building programme is not only taking away opportunities from the unemployed it is depriving our children of suitable environments in which to learn.”
