Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the delegates for their presentations. I wish to pick up on two points which have been addressed.

On community education, I fully support the call by Aontas for an exemption and I am not sure if that is something we can do as a committee. We can use the opportunity now to say directly to the Department, since it is represented here, that definitely community education providers should be included in the list of providers that are exempt from the learner protection fund. I thought Ms Farrell's presentation was excellent, particularly how she spoke about women. We have a great history in this country of negatively impacting women and children whenever cuts are made. It is always women and children who suffer the most. Community education is key to getting people either progressing in a career or getting into the workforce in the first place. We cannot put a value on that.

I came across the Longford Women's Link through different work I was doing with the early years sector and childcare workers. The work it does is invaluable. I definitely think that, if others are entitled to an exemption, as a committee, we should be supporting that call for community education exemptions. I thought I was reading it wrong because I thought it could not be the case that exemptions do not apply. I would be surprised if everybody here did not support the Aontas call for an exemption. Many things are said at this committee, as Ms Farrell said, about supporting community education. Now is our chance to do something proactive about that.

I wanted to touch on a point about the unions. We often come across stories about people who are taken on in September, let go in December and taken on again in January. One cannot have any quality of life if that is one's work environment and one is not seen as a permanent worker. We have dealt with the unions in the past and I welcome the fact that a mediator is now present who will look at this and resolve many of those issues.