Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the committee, I welcome the Minister with responsibility for further and higher education, research, innovation and science, Deputy Harris, and the Minister of State with responsibility for skills and further education, Deputy Niall Collins, and their officials to the meeting. I congratulate both Ministers and wish them the best of luck in their new roles. As Chairman of the committee, I look forward to working with both of them, their officials and their Department. I speak on behalf of all members of the committee.

The meeting will comprise two parts. Part one will be the briefing on parts of the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Bill 2020 under the remit of the Department with responsibility for further and higher education, research, innovation and science. Part two will be a discussion of the Department's key priorities, specifically, the effects of Covid-19 on the 2020 admissions, the reopening and delivery of courses in further and higher education institutes, future funding reforms at both levels to include apprenticeships and traineeships, and proposed national strategies for research, innovation and science.

The format of the meeting is that I will invite both the Minister and Minister of State to make brief opening statements, which will be followed by a discussion with members of the committee. As the Minister and Minister of State will probably be aware, the committee will publish the opening statements on the website following the meeting.

While the meeting is in two parts, to ensure absolute clarity I propose that members can ask questions on both parts together because of the time constraints involved. This is the most pragmatic way to ensure that all members get a reasonable amount of time to ask questions. If there is time at the end of the meeting, members can ask supplementary questions and I will accommodate everybody as fairly as possible.

It has been agreed that we have a rotation of speakers. Each speaker has six minutes to include the speaker asking questions and the Ministers responding. Then we will move on to the next member.

Before we begin, I remind members of the long-standing parliamentary practice to the effect that they should not comment on, criticise or make charges against a person outside of the House or an official, either by name or in such a way as to make him or her identifiable. I ask Ministers and their officials and all members to switch off their mobile phones or turn them onto airplane mode.

I invite the Minister, Deputy Harris, followed by the Minister of State, Deputy Collins, to make their opening statements.