Minister must address Dáil on Leaving Cert results delay and reason for withholding information
- Ministers must be accountable to the Dáil but deliberately withheld answer on Leaving Cert.
The Minister for Education must address the Dáil on Tuesday over the three week delay in issuing Leaving Cert results according to Labour Education Spokesperson Aodhán O Ríordáin, and her reasons for hiding this from TDs yesterday which breached the Ministerial code of conduct.
O Ríordáin raised the issue with Minister Norma Foley who refused to confirm the delay in issuing the results to the Dáil but hours later published a statement from the Department announcing it.
Deputy O Ríordáin said:
“Labour are calling for a change in the Order of Business on Tuesday so that the Minister for Education returns to answer questions on the delay, why she failed to inform the Oireachtas, and what stakeholders were consulted.
“The Minister was taking questions for over two hours on estimates for her Department and failed to mention this very significant change. She did not respond to my direct question on a results delay. The three week delay leaves many questions unanswered and she must address the Dáil and take questions on Tuesday to provide more information on this matter.
“It is not good enough that a statement would be issued on a Thursday evening and for the Minister to hope that that is the end of the matter.
“The Taoiseach made clear this week that Ministers must be accountable to the Dáil. However the Minister for Education has now admitted publicly that she choose to not comprehensively and fully answer a question from me yesterday regarding when the Leaving Cert results will be published. This was despite the fact she knew the answer and announced it a few hours later. This means that the Minister failed in her constitutional duty and her behaviour needs to be investigated by the Ceann Comhairle and I’ll be writing to him today to ask him to to do just that.