"Monaghan children have been left without school bus places yet again." That's according to Cavan-Monaghan Sinn Fein TD, Deputy Matt Carthy who has accused government of "failing to plan" as local families face school transport disruption.
Speaking to Northern Sound, Deputy Carthy says the current situation is placing "huge pressure" on families who have been put in this "chaotic situation" with no time to make alternative arrangements.
According to Deputy Carthy, the fault lies "squarely at government" who once again have failed to adequately plan for the new school year. He added that the 'School Transport Scheme' review is long overdue and is "integral" in establishing a viable future for the school transport system.
The local representative believes that local families "deserve better" than this chaos and confusion which happens every year and is totally avoidable. Deputy Carthy continued; "Yet again some families in Co Monaghan are beginning a new school term without a school bus place for their children. Across the state, parents of hundreds of school children have been told their child no longer has a place on the school bus despite paying for it earlier this year.
"The School Transport Scheme review is long overdue and has been ongoing for more than two and a half years now. The review began in February 2021 and the scheme is operating on a temporary basis in the meantime.
"Sinn Féin have been urging the government to publish this review, including in the Dáil in July when we called on the Minister to resolve this before the Dáil summer recess. Unfortunately, government failed to heed our appeals and now families in Monaghan and elsewhere are paying the price.
"Families deserve better than this chaos and confusion which happens every year and is totally avoidable. Government must publish the transport review and ensure families get the certainty they need. In the meantime, Sinn Féin representatives are engaging with Bus Éireann and the Department of Education to seek resolution for those Monaghan families that have been affected by this latest debacle.”
