A call for the National Car Test to be applied to school buses has been made following an accident in which four schoolgirls fell through the rear window of a bus.
The pupils, from Belmont National School near Milltown, Co Galway, were travelling in a 52-seater bus operated by Bus Eireann when the accident happened on Monday afternoon.
A 10-year-old girl is being treated at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, where her condition is described as "critical". A nine-year-old is in a serious condition at University College Hospital Galway, while two friends, aged 10 and 12, are being treated there for lesser injuries.
The Fine Gael public enterprise and transport spokesman, Mr Jim Higgins TD, said all school buses should be subject to an NCT test. "Private coaches and buses are all subjected to very rigorous tests which are carried out on a regular basis at officially approved Department of the Environment test centres," he said.
"All aspects of the vehicle safety and suitability are subjected to strict testing and monitoring including fume emissions. "On the other hand, school buses are tested by Bus Eireann themselves and are not required to be tested by the Department of the Environment.
"I am calling on the Minister for Education and Science to is sue an order instructing that all school buses should in future be tested at DOE centres the same as private buses."
Mr Higgins said it had been brought to his attention that in the past two weeks the brakes failed on a school bus in east Mayo. He said a tragedy was averted by the skill of the driver.