Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 21 June 2023
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills
Key Issues in Higher and Further Education: Discussion
Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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With regard to the Wexford campus, the compulsory purchase order is almost complete. It is going through without any major hiccups. The chief executive of Wexford County Council is in contact with the Department and the Secretary General. He very much appreciates, as do I as a public representative, what the Department is doing. Is the Department working with SETU and other partners on putting together the master plan so that we are not waiting until we get it over the line before moving on to the next step? Is work being done on other parts of the design and getting ready to go to planning as soon as possible?
How will the conversation start about what courses will be in Wexford? Who will be part of it? It will include SETU and its governing body along with the Department. In the same way as other counties, Wexford has its own strengths. The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, is based in Wexford. There are also a large number of financial services in County Wexford. Waterford has many pharmaceutical companies. It is about working with industry. This is about the region. It is not only about Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny or Carlow but also about the region working together. Somebody living in Carlow can get into a car and be in Waterford in 35 or 40 minutes.