Teacher conference begins in Kerry today

The annual congress of the Irish National Teacher's Organisation begins in Kerry late, with pay and resource cutbacks likely to dominate proceedings.

Around 800 delegates are expected to attend the event, which runs in Killarney until Wednesday.

It will be addressed by the Education Minister Ruairí Quinn tomorrow.

INTO president Noreen Flynn said that delegates will be seeking assurances from Minister Quinn about the survival of rural schools.

"The Minister's not, as he says, closing any schools, but by dropping the teacher's numbers … [this] will inevitably lead to closures and this has created huge fear and anxiety in rural areas," she said.

"This is something that the Minister just needs to address."