Ballesty calls on Green Party TD to reverse savage cutbacks in education - Press Release 25 October 2008

Ballesty calls on Green Party TD to reverse savage cutbacks in education

Sinn Féin representative for Lucan and Palmerstown Robert Ballesty and members of Dublin Mid West Sinn Féin today held a protest outside the constituency offices of Green Party TD and Chair of the Education and Science Committee in the Oireachtas, Paul Gogarty.

Robert Ballesty said. "We are here today to demand that the government reverse the cuts in education. The Fianna Fáil/Green Party government promised that education would be free from frontline cuts, but with this budget have produced devastating cuts that will adversely affect, children, parents and teachers. Classes sizes are getting bigger, there are more charges for school transport and college registration fees are to rise. This government promised before the general election in 2007 that class sizes would be reduced, and many schools that were promised new buildings still find themselves in rundown and dilapidated pre-fabs. I am calling on Paul Gogarty to ensure that funding is made available to Gaelscoil Eiscir Riada in Lucan which has been officially recognised as a school and have been given a site on which to build but there is still no sign of funding to build a permanent school.

"Fianna Fáil and the Green Party thought that the easy targets for budget 2009 would be pensioners, children and working families. The senior citizens who protested this week showed that people power works. They have forced a government climb-down. What the Government have done on the medical card for over-70s does not go far enough but they would have done nothing if older people had not risen up, made their case in the clearest and strongest terms and demonstrated their anger on the airwaves and on the streets. They have shown that the Irish public does not support this budget. We demand that the Fianna Fáil/Green Party Government reverse their savage cutbacks in education."