Senator Mary M White:

I thank both Ministers for their excellent presentations and the passion with which they are addressing their portfolios. While English is the most spoken language in the world, students in Europe learn two languages, their national language and English. We all know we are appalling at having a second language. For all the time spent learning Irish in schools, very few second level graduates can speak it. While I accept it is a political issue, has the Minister for Education and Skills addressed this?

Graduate conversion courses provide an excellent opportunity for the filling of ICT, information and communication technology, vacancies. We note that applications were well in excess of the 768 places available. Has the Minister considered how he could give more opportunities to avail of this course? Has he any initiative to boost the available places in response to this demand, while mindful of the need to maintain quality in the programmes?

The national target is to double the number of ICT graduates to 2,000 per annum. What is the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation's contribution to meet this target?