The education minister has rejected claims that she “misled” the Dail about meeting an executive of a company that manufactures phone pouches for schools.
Norma Foley is understood to have briefly encountered a representative of Yondr at a conference for school principals two years ago, and was handed a phone pouch.
However, the Department of Education said no formally arranged meeting with the company took place at any time.
Several schools already operate phone bans (Jane Barlow/PA)
The Government subsequently announced multimillion-euro funding for a school phone pouch scheme in Budget 2025. It has met significant criticism from opposition benches.
Ms Foley and the Department of Education say they had no further meetings with the company, despite repeated requests after that encounter.
Records released under Freedom of Information show that in November, the Department told Yondr it would be in touch to arrange a meeting with Ms Foley.
However, the minister said this meeting never took place. Yondr did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
It comes after Sinn Fein finance spokesman Pearse Doherty accused the minister of misleading the Dail by not disclosing the encounter in her answer to a parliamentary question.
On October 9, Ms Foley told Mr Doherty that neither she nor any of her officials had any meetings with representatives of phone pouch producers.
The nine million euro scheme to provide schools with pouches to counter mobile phone disruption was the focus of Sinn Fein’s contribution in the final Leaders’ Questions before the election.
The Department of Education has further estimated an additional cost of between 1.7 and 2 million euros in annual costs for the controversial school phone pouch scheme.
The figure is based on an estimated 20% replacement rate for the pouches every year.
Sinn Fein’s Pearse Doherty (Liam McBurney/PA)
Mr Doherty said the price tag for the scheme was “craziness”.
He asked why Ms Foley did not disclose the meeting in her answer to the parliamentary question.
He said: “I recently asked Minister Foley did she have any meeting with a representative of a company that produces these mobile phone pouches and on the Dail record she answered ‘No’.
“And it’s simply not the case, the meeting happened, a phone pouch was given two years ago.”
Mr Doherty said the Government’s narrative behind introducing the pouches is “as clear as mud”.
Tanaiste Micheal Martin told the Dail that the pouches have been found to be “transformational” for school life, while the department has defended their introduction as “easy to use, cost-effective and better for equity among students”.
Tanaiste Micheal Martin (Brian Lawless/PA)
Mr Martin said Sinn Fein was “desperately grasping” for an issue to assist it in the election campaign, adding that smartphone use is the “public health threat of our time” for children.
He added: “The impact on children is horrific.”
Mr Doherty called on the Fianna Fail leader to address the matter of a meeting with the phone pouch company.
“You try to dismiss this as a non-issue. This is a serious issue of waste of public money, a vanity project by a Fianna Fail minister who was extensively lobbied by an executive, who was given a pouch and who misled this Dail throughout the process.”
Mr Martin said Sinn Fein had introduced a similar scheme in Northern Ireland.
Mr Doherty protested this assertion, as the education portfolio is held by the DUP.
However, the Tanaiste said Sinn Fein holds the finance ministry.
The final Leaders’ Questions was marked by raised voices and repeated interruptions, prompting the Ceann Comhairle to appeal to deputies not to force him to call a suspension.
Sean O Fearghail said: “Can we maintain some sort of decorum? I know you’re all worked up and excited about undertaking the campaign, but save it for the doorsteps – and let us behave ourselves here.”
Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns (Brian Lawless/PA)
Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns also used the final Leaders’ Questions as an opportunity to criticise the Government’s record.
Ms Cairns focused on the coalition’s housing delivery, accusing ministers of a “con” on affordable homes.
She said: “As we prepare for the election, people will be thinking about who they’re going to vote for, and I hope people will be wary of political parties who have a track record of broken promises.
“For example, in the last election campaign, you promised to deliver 50,000 affordable purchase homes after nearly five years of government. How many of them have been delivered? Less than 1,000.”
She added: “I want to say very clearly to those people, you’ve done nothing wrong. You’ve been failed by this Government and by previous governments who have turned the housing crisis into a complete housing disaster and broken commitment after commitment.”
Outgoing People Before Profit TD Brid Smith (Gareth Chaney/PA)
Mr Martin countered by saying “significant momentum” has built up on housing delivery.
He said: “More homes have been completed in the last four-and-a-half years than in the previous nine years combined, and we will exceed our Housing for All completion targets again this year.”
Mr Martin added: “And the pipeline is extremely strong.”
On her final day in Leinster House, People Before Profit representative Brid Smith – who is not seeking re-election – criticised the century of consecutive governments containing Fine Gael and Fianna Fail.
She further called on other opposition parties not to “prop up these 100-year-old parties of failure”.
Marking the final day of the Dail term, contributors variously thanked the “community” and staff of Leinster House for their work over the last five years.
The general election will officially be called on Friday, scheduled to take place on November 29.