Maria Byrne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Mr. Doran and Ms O'Brien and thank them for their presentations. Mr. Doran mentioned that many nurses from both sides of the Border go to England for training, including specialised training. I will mention one area that is of concern in this context. Many qualifications are recognised at present. If nurses train here, their qualifications are recognised in the UK and in Northern Ireland. The reverse is also the case. There is a fear that such qualifications will not be recognised in future. Will Irish students be treated like non-European students if they go to the UK for training? Will they have to take additional courses when they come back here? Such issues are of concern to people who are currently in training. Many nurses went for specialised training in advance of the recent opening of a new accident and emergency department in Limerick. They were unable to receive some of that training in Ireland and had to travel overseas. Such questions would cause me to fear what will happen in the future, for example when people seek to intensify their training. Something has to be worked out if this is to be kept to the fore.

Ms O'Brien spoke about skills and training. As a member of the Joint Committee on Education and Skills, I am aware that additional money has been put in place for training and skills. I suppose third-level education is not for everybody. It is important that extra funding is provided so that more courses, skills and apprenticeships can be offered. I share Ms O'Brien's view that not enough people are on these courses at the moment. There is not enough choice. I am aware that consideration is being given to expanding the range of courses on offer. I do not know whether the INOU made a submission to the Department of Education and Skills when it was looking for suggestions of areas where there are shortages. If not, I encourage it to contact the Department. This issue has been highlighted in Ms O'Brien's report. A great deal of community employment has been created under the community employment schemes. I am hearing that some community centres are finding it very hard to get people who qualify for such work now because they are working part-time. Does Ms O'Brien think the qualification criteria for these schemes need to be changed?