Mayo Deputy Michael Ring has called the Minister for Education and Science, Batt O’Keeffe, a “Scrooge” for his failure to include the national school sector in his U-turn on educational cuts.
Dep Ring stated: “The Government as a whole should be ashamed of targeting school children in their attempt to make national savings. It is a disgrace that there should be any diminution of the educational budget as what pupils learned today would stand them to them for the rest of their lives.”
Dep Ring protested: “I have attended several public meetings in relation to the education cutbacks. I have heard first hand the devastating effect the cutbacks will have on schools such as Killawalla NS, Craggagh NS, Inver NS and indeed other schools in County Mayo. The cutbacks will be extremely severe on all the national schools. Education is not about vested interests. It is about our children.”
Dep Ring surmised: “This is the one chance in life they have to obtain an education. We do not want to go back to the situation where children left school without being able to read or write. In many instances this was due to large numbers of pupils being in individual classes. Now it could come about because of an uncaring Government who, it seems, care more about budgetary accounting that they do about the future of the next generation. Any cutbacks in educational budgets are a mistake by this Government. It is wrong to be forcing parents and teachers onto the streets protesting to retain a proper standard of education for children,” concluded Dep Ring.
