James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Deputy. There are a number of points there.

A new dentistry course starts this year in the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, RCSI. I was at the college when it announced it recently and that is to kick off this September. That is under way and imminent.

In respect of veterinary studies, I completely agree there are too many Irish students studying in Poland and eastern Europe, and that has been the case, unfortunately, for a number of years. We will introduce two new courses, one at ATU and one at SETU, both of which are planned to start in September 2026, a year away. I have been out to both colleges, and have a meeting this afternoon. It is very important we do that. We will continue to monitor demand to see whether those course provisions are adequate to cater for it. That is very much part of the parcel.

As regards the other healthcare-related courses I am rolling out, I worked with the Minister, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, on the disability provision. We invited the Department of Health to provide some guidance as to what the priority disciplines in the healthcare field are that are required. We were advised that among these are occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, dietitians and educational psychologists. Others such as the Ministers, Deputies McEntee and Foley, as well as educational psychologists, had other inputs. We have a Cabinet subcommittee working on disability provision and based on that, we have identified nine disciplines which are key to that provision. I am on course to introduce 461 new places on those which, of course, will repeat over time. We are expanding offerings across those areas.

In terms of the TU borrowing framework, I intend and have set course to enable this programme for Government commitment. I am keen to fulfil it,but it is not simple. There is the ongoing off-balance sheet and on-balance sheet issue, in terms of our own national borrowing limits, etc. There are potential solutions to that, including legislation, but there is a bit of work still to be done there. I am engaging with each of the institutions and as I said, I will meet SETU today. I have already been out on-site. The meeting today is in Dublin. I have visited all of the TUs at this stage and have had conversations with the boards. As proposals come through – I invite proposals and if there are particular funding needs we can examine those in detail - we can look at the borrowing framework and how it might be enabled in a way that enables the State to meet its own fiscal commitments and obligations, and yet give the institutions the freedom to be able to invest in their own capital spending, which they very much wish to do and which I want them to be able to do. Certain institutions have greater levels of maturity than others and maybe greater capacity to progress some of these projects. I invite projects on a case by case basis and if one emerges as a pilot, that is the one that moves first and the rest may fall behind that.

In respect of student accommodation, I completely agree about the digs being a key part of that. The Deputy mentioned quality. We have a light engagement, and I use the phrase "light regulation" around that. There is a sample licence agreement between the student and the digs provider. There are 4,000 digs beds available today. There is a website the Deputy can check. There is typically a much greater number of digs available than there are private rental accommodation. I take the Deputy’s point about quality. I am sure there is a spectrum across the board there.

In terms of apprenticeships, we have spent more. The budget for apprenticeships has increased massively since this Department was created; increasing by €184 million, up to €339 million. It is the biggest funding commitment for apprenticeships ever in the history of the State and certainly this Department had a lot to do with that. This year, a further €77.4 million was committed. We are committed to growing both the breadth and range of apprenticeships out there and supporting employers, who the Deputy mentioned. I met a group of employers on this morning. All day, every day, I meet stakeholders, be they students, student unions, employers, training providers, colleges or institutions. It is very much part of my approach as a new Minister to get out into the field and meet people and hear what they have to say. There are challenges but that is part of the reason I am listening, that is, to hear what they are and see how to tackle them.