Mr. Seán Ó Foghlú:

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee for the opportunity to discuss the 2018 and 2019 appropriation accounts of the Department of Education and Skills. We have provided the committee with briefing material on both accounts so I propose to keep my opening statement short.

As the committee will be aware, a new Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science was established on 10 July 2020 and since that time we have been working to finalise the transfer of certain functions previously performed by the Department of Education and Skills to the new Department. A transfer of functions order has been made today, formally assigning most of the further and higher education functions to the new Department. As the Comptroller and Auditor General noted, most of the B and C programmes will transfer to the new Department, along with the National Training Fund. In addition, the Government has announced that certain functions relating to education welfare and the education welfare service will be transferring from the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to the Minister for Education and Skills. Work is ongoing in that regard.

The establishment of the new Department and the transfer of the various functions will impact on the 2020 appropriation accounts but has no impact on those for 2018 and 2019, which are under examination today. The Secretary General of the new Department will be the Accounting Officer for the new Vote once it is established in the coming weeks and will submit an appropriation account for 2020 in respect of the functions transferred to the new Department. However, for 2018 and 2019, my comments and the sums referenced will relate to the whole of Vote 26.

The Department’s net voted expenditure in 2018 was some €9.34 billion. Of this, some €742 million was capital expenditure. In addition, the Department’s 2018 expenditure allocations included the non-voted National Training Fund of €415 million, providing for upskilling and reskilling, for both those seeking employment and those in employment.

In 2019, net voted expenditure amounted to some €9.87 billion, of which €940 million was capital expenditure. The expenditure allocation for the National Training Fund in 2019 was €509 million. Net pay and superannuation account for around 73% of the Department’s overall budget. In 2019, this provided for over 110,000 public service employees and some 49,000 public service pensioners.

The Department’s expenditure was divided into four programmes in 2018 and three in 2019. This means the expenditure relating to capital services, which was previously in a separate programme, is now included within the remaining three programme figures for 2019 and allocated accordingly. I will not go through the details of the programmes as time is tight.

The Department was voted Supplementary Estimates of almost €182 million towards the end of 2018 and €68 million in 2019. These made provision for increased allocation across a range of areas.

The statement of internal control that forms part of both accounts provides details regarding the control systems in place for procurement. It also notes details of instances of non-compliance with public procurement rules. Such instances have arisen for reasons such as urgency, a need for business continuity and sole suppliers. I assure the committee that action is taken where feasible to address such instances. The Department is proactively engaged with the procurement reform programme and is taking the opportunity to use centralised contracts and frameworks where appropriate.

The statement on internal financial control also notes the Department's activity in the area of shared services. Under the shared services plan for 2017-20, we have been investigating the opportunities for shared service initiatives across the education and training sector and actively participating in the roll-out of shared services.

The Covid-19 pandemic is a significant event and it has severely impacted the economy and the education sector. This event had no impact on the 2019 accounts but will of course impact on those for 2020 and later years.

The Department is participating in the central co-ordination structures to ensure a joined-up approach to Covid-19 across Government. The response of the education and training system is aligned to our core national priority of saving lives while focusing on ensuring continuity of education for learners, with a particular focus on more vulnerable students.

I thank the committee for the opportunity to speak. I am happy to take any questions.