At the time of national crisis, the Government must waive this year’s Leaving Cert fees, and remove both an administrative burden on schools and an unnecessary financial pressure on families.
This is the view of Labour Galway City West councillor, Niall McNelis, as his party calls on the Government to waive the €116 fee to cover the administrative costs of the examination. The fee was also waived last year following a campaign by the Labour Party.
"Students and families throughout the country continue to face unprecedented financial difficulty and uncertainty," said Cllr McNelis. “In a year where the part-time jobs students traditionally take have evaporated, asking them to find €116 for the privilege of sitting exams this year is just unfair and unnecessary."
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Cllr McNelis warned that if the Department of Education insisted on the fee being paid, it would put "a huge administrative burden" on schools, which are already having to manage "online learning and preparing for a return to in-class teaching".
The former mayor called for "a common sense approach" and for the Department to "find solutions before they become problems".
