The Minister for Education was recently highlighting the reduction in class sizes and, where this happens, it is obviously welcome. However, in many schools, like St. Louis Primary School in Rathmines, the class sizes have increased due to the Department policy that was set prior to Covid. As a result, there is now an empty classroom in St. Louis Primary School and a teacher on the pandemic unemployment payment. Can some common sense be brought to this in order to reverse this nonsensical situation, to give the school back its teacher and to reduce class sizes?

The Deputy might give me the details of the situation. No teacher who is working in a school is on the pandemic unemployment payment.

She has been let go.

That is a separate issue that relates to teacher allocation in regard to pupil enrolments at the beginning of September. I will engage with the Minister for Education on this. During Covid-19, as much discretion and flexibility as possible should be shown by the Department of Education in regard to DEIS schools in particular, and in regard to enrolment and teacher allocation, particularly given the year that is in it.