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ONE WEEK ON since the special needs assistants (SNAs) controversy erupted, a blame game is still going on, and there are mixed views among backbench TDs on where the fault lies.
This time last week, the phones of politicians, including ministers, were hopping over letters that were issued by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) which, by all accounts, coldly informed some schools that they were to get a reduced number of SNAs come September.
Such was the outrage, from both opposition and government TDs, a quick u-turn followed, with an announcement the plan was to be paused.
Then another announcement followed from Education Minister Hildegarde Naughton that no school would see a reduction in their allocation, for this year, anyway.
How could the matter be handled so badly? That was the question swirling around Leinster House.
Some TDs feel the error lands at the foot of the education minister, who is a Fine Gael TD. However, Michael Moynihan, who is the junior minister that has been out on TV and radio all week on the issue, is a Fianna Fáil TD, so no party is blameless, if that is the view.
Are there tensions between the coalition parties over how this all played out?
There is, said one TD, who stated that people feel let down by the minister.
However, another said they believe the blame lies with the NCSE, stating that the letters were not thought through, were not signed, and gave no clear rationale for the decision.
Senior sources state that the NCSE and the Department of Education work hand-in-glove on such matters, but if so, it is difficult to see how such a mess could not be foreseen.
However, there is a view that ministers should be made aware of any NCSE recommendations of this nature, with some stating that the NCSE letter going out before plans were in place paved the way for the backlash and the “government got that in buckets”.
Senior sources again stated that it is not customary for such information to go to Cabinet, something the Taoiseach said today also.
Speaking in the Dáil, he said “we didn’t sign off, there was no memo came before government saying ‘we’re going to cut SNAS in individual schools or specific schools’. None. Didn’t. Okay, that’s the facts. Didn’t… no government signed off on any memo or memorandum or any note to say ‘X SNA is going to be cut off’. That’s reality,” Micheál Martin said.
With crowds of protesters gathering outside the Dáil and around the country this evening, the minister moved to take accept responsibility, stating:
I fully accept the process and outcomes were not properly communicated – that is the fault of government and I will ensure that this does not happen again.
Obviously sensing that some of the blame was landing at the feet of the NCSE and their staff, the minister told the Dáil not to blame the NCSE for the situation.
She denied it is an “unaccountable gatekeeper”, stating that there are “checks and balances” in place regarding decisions it makes, stating that there is an appeals mechanism and independent panels that adjudicate on those matters.
She said the body “did the work it is mandated to do”, adding that she had heard that some staff members have been subjected to unwarranted abuse in the last week.
“This is completely unjustified,” said the minister, who repeated that the NCSE was “doing the job they are mandated to do”.
“Whatever anger people have” there is no justification for taking it out on “dedicated, honourable, diligent and professional” staff, said the minister, who added that she regrets this has happened.
Naughton told the Dáil today that she understands that people are angry and frustrated, stating as a teacher herself, she knows the value of SNAs in schools.
It wasn’t just the education minister that was all apologies today – it was mea culpa from the Tánaiste also.
He told the Claire Byrne Show on Newstalk that “the buck stops with us” in how the review was handled.
“There’s been a lot of hurt caused over the course of the last week, a lot of stress, a lot of anxiety. We got this wrong,” he said.
“The reality of the situation is when something goes wrong, you’ve got to put your hands up and you’ve got to fix it,” said Harris.
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