The free schoolbooks scheme should be expanded to children in private fee-paying primary schools, according to a Fine Gael TD.

The measure announced in Budget 2023 was initially expected to see free schoolbooks rolled out to every primary school in the country.

However, the Department of Education has since confirmed that the programme will only be rolled out in recognised primary schools in the free education sector.

It said no funding has been set aside for the 38 fee-charging schools across the State.

A pile of books in a classroom. Image: Alamy Stock Photo

On Newstalk Breakfast however, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill said she was disappointed to see private schools excluded.

She urged the Minister for Public Expenditure and Minister for Education to expand the scheme.

Deputy McNeill said the scheme was announced as a universal measure and should apply to all children across the State.

Schoolbooks

She also noted that some children in private school do not come from a rich background.

“Some of these are denominational schools where there aren’t other options available,” she said.

“There may be very particular reasons maybe for sending a child there and I think there is an assumption - which I would suggest, based on my interactions with different people is not always the case - that everybody there has lots of money.

“That is not always the case.”

"Strange"

She said it is “a bit strange” to treat children differently depending on the school they go to.

“This is a small group,” she said. “I don’t understand why you would distinguish between those different children.

“Apart from anything else, the efficiencies the department can drive from acquiring books for a larger number of children has the opportunity to have cost-saving measures by including the additional numbers in their negotiations with booksellers.

“There are certainly children today in fee-paying schools who don’t have a huge amount of money at home and I don’t understand why those children would be treated differently when there is such a very small number of them.”