I wish to raise the 58 school building projects throughout the country that are currently on hold due to a lack of funding in the Department of Education. I accept the reason for this is inflation in the cost of construction. A public meeting will be held tonight in Portlaoise regarding Kolbe Special School, which is in particular need and completely worthy of a new premises. When will additional funds come from the central Exchequer into the Department of Education so that all these 58 projects can proceed as planned?

I understand the concerns parents and staff have about these school projects. There are one or two such projects in every Deputy's constituency, including my own. It is a matter about which we are all very concerned. As a result of the rising cost of construction and the fact that the Department of Education is doing such a good job on building new schools and extending existing schools, it is running short of money. It will be provided with additional funding shortly to allow those school projects to resume. The Minister, Deputy Foley, and the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, are bottoming out exactly how much is required. I expect there will be an announcement on that in the near future.