Cavanagh slams ‘savage’ education cuts
New budgetary guidelines on education are having a devastating effect on the ground, according to a north Kilkenny councillor.
Fine Gael Cllr Mary Hilda Cavanagh, who serves on the Boards of Management of a number of educational institutions at primary, secondary and third level, labelled the education cuts as ‘savage’.
“Bigger class sizes, a huge rise in student charges and a severe reduction in all education services means that today’s children will be very disadvantaged in terms of their education,” she said.
At a VEC meeting this week Cllr Cavanagh highlighted a list of cuts that would affect the education sector in Kilkenny.
Chief among those, she said, were increased fees across the board from college education fees to school transport costs which would greatly add to the burden on parents who were already struggling.
“The recovery of the Irish economy will undoubtedly be severely impeded by the education cuts given that all businesses at home and abroad describe our educated workforce as our biggest asset,” she said.
Other highlighted education cuts included the abolition of substitute teachers, the abolition of several grants, a reduction in English language support teachers, a reduction in funding for local libraries, an increase in examination costs and a failure to increase the student maintenance grant for next year.