There was a remarkable admission last night during oral questions to the Minister for Education when the Minister of State with responsibility for special education said that the new allocation model for special needs resources will mean that 33% of schools will now have less special educational needs resources. She admitted this on the floor of the House last night. This is because complex needs are now being taken out of the criteria for the allocation of special educational needs resources. She said that she had a wide consultation on this but the INTO is saying that this model is fundamentally flawed. Many Deputies across the House have had contact from schools which are horrified at the loss of special educational needs resources. The Minister of State said that 67% of schools are not losing resources or are gaining resources but that means 33% of schools are losing. Will the Government revisit this model and ensure that schools will not lose the resources they have on the basis of complex needs, which are now not being accounted for under the new allocation model?

My understanding is that the allocations are made every year based on the profile of the children in the school. For example, in any given year children with particular needs may leave the school and move on to another one or more kids with special needs may come in. It is based on the profile of the children in the school, not on the school itself. I understand that what Deputy Ó Ríordáin is saying is correct. We have 1,000 more special education teachers than we had back in 2021 and two thirds of schools will be gaining hours or having the number of hours remain the same. About one third of schools will be losing and in most cases, this loss will be less than five hours. My understanding is that this is based on the profile of the children currently in the school or due to be in the school for next year.