SF education policy:Sinn Féin will oppose any State subvention for fee-paying schools if in government, its education spokesman Seán Crowe said yesterday.
Speaking at the launch of the party's education manifesto, he also said the party would "end the practice of school league tables".
But Sinn Féin says it does not support the return of tuition fees for full-time third-level students, despite concerns that the abolition of fees amounts to a subsidy to the middle class.
Sinn Féin is the first major party to oppose unequivocally State support for fee-paying schools. At present, these schools receive abut €80 million a year in State support, most of it used to pay teachers. In recent years, several fee-paying schools have also received some State support for buildings and other projects.
Mr Crowe said parents were entitled to opt for private fee-paying schools if they wished, but the taxpayer should not be asked to provide any subsidy. He said any change in the arrangements for fee-paying schools could include special provision for a small number controlled by religious minorities.
On league tables, he said the current lists published in the media failed to give a rounded picture of a school's performance. Invariably, schools which are well-resourced featured strongly but these tables did not reflect the social mix of the school or the effort made to combat disadvantage, he said.
Mr Crowe said the party would move to abolish fees for part -time students as part of a general drive to widen access.
In government, the party would prioritise tackling educational disadvantage.
"Current Government policy has entrenched educational inequalities. Students from disadvantaged backgrounds are still hugely under-represented at third-level - 90 per cent of children from a professional background go to college, compared with only 20 per cent of those whose parents work in skilled or semi-skilled jobs," he said.
He also pointed out that only 7 per cent of the estimated 500,000 adults with literacy problems receive tuition.
At second level, he said the notion of free education was a myth as parents bear the cost of registration charges and expensive textbooks. More than 80 per cent of school computer equipment was paid for not by the State but by fundraising by schools and parents, he claimed.