Archbishop broadsides Govt over education cuts

One of Ireland's most senior church leaders has accused the Government of discriminating against protestant schools.

Archbishop of Dublin Dr John Neill said the nature of cuts in education spending show a lack of understanding of the needs of the protestant community in Ireland.

The second most senior Anglican in Ireland claimed education cuts were discriminating against the protestant community and showed a lack of understanding of the needs of protestant schoolchildren.

Dr Neill said Education Minister Batt O'Keefe's department had shown an unbelievable lack of understanding towards protestant schoolchildren in Ireland.

He said protestant schools provide education for specific needs and that whereas all previous governments had recognised them, the current cabinet appeared to be blind to them.

Dr Neill made the comments during an event celebrating the history of Kilkenny College, the biggest boarding school in Ireland, predominantly attended by Church of Ireland students.

The senior churchman said the school was now ``vulnerable'', as were all schools in the protestant bloc grant system.