Donegal TD Thomas Pringle, has welcomed the Government’s confirmation of delivery of the 58 school building projects that had been halted, and has credited the school community at Gaelscoil na gCeithre Máistrí for their campaign.
On Friday last, a delegation from the school met with Education Minister Norma Foley, and held a protest outside a function she was attending.
He says their campaign was a strong one, and the government must now ensure that the works proceed straight away, and they do not have to retender.
Statement in full –
Pringle welcomes Government confirmation of delivery of school building projects
Independent TD for Donegal, Thomas Pringle, has welcomed the Government’s confirmation of delivery of the 58 school building projects that had been halted, and credited the school community at Gaelscoil na gCeithre Máistrí for their campaign.
Deputy Pringle said: “I want to pay tribute to the Gaelscoil na gCeithre Máistrí community for their strong campaign and for making their voices heard in support of their school. They were expecting to see builders on site when they received word that the project was to be stalled indefinitely.
“It’s important now that these projects proceed straight away, so that they do not have to retender. The contractor should have been on site at the Gaelscoil weeks ago,” he said.
Minister for Education, Norma Foley, today confirmed an agreement had been secured to guarantee and support the roll-out and continuation of the Department’s school building programme. The Department of Education will update each of the 58 schools in the country affected by the pause in relation to the next steps in the delivery of their projects, the Department said in a statement.
Deputy Pringle had raised the issue in the Dáil, saying it had taken the Gaelscoil a long time to get on the building list in the first place, and after finally getting on the list in 2016 nothing had been built seven years later.
The deputy said: “This is good news for the Gaelscoil and all of the 58 schools affected. Now we must ensure that the work proceeds quickly.”
