Stop Church selling off our schools’ lands

PRESSURE is mounting on the Government to bring in legislation that will block the Church from selling properties it owns that are being used by or surrounding state-run schools.

The majority of Irish primary schools are owned by religious orders, and in recent years they have sought to sell these properties to raise money.

At the Oireachtas Education Committee, Green Party TD Catherine Martin raised the case of a 5.2-acre site at Our Lady’s Grove primary school in Goatstown, which was sold by the Sisters of Jesus and Mary last year.

The property in the south Dublin suburb fetched €13million – 30% above the asking price.

The row erupted against the backdrop of a pledge by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar that it is time to build ‘a new covenant for the 21st century’ amid an increasing public demand for separation of Church and State.

Department officials said that in schools which are not owned by the Minister for Education, the decisions in relation to the property rested with the owners, the religious orders.

Ms Martin asked: ‘Have you looked into the possibility of bringing forward legislation? Has the Department examined areas such as compulsory purchase orders for the retention of lands?’ Sinn Féin Senator Paul Gavan said: ‘We seem to be stuck in this 19th-century thinking that it’s still OK to fund education while leaving it owned by somebody else.’ But a source close to Education Minister Richard Bruton said: ‘What is the alternative here? It would cost billions to buy back the lands.’

‘Decisions lie with religious orders’