Results 6,561-6,580 of 7,268 for speaker:Rose Conway-Walsh

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (24 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: 1172. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of apprentices that have been employed across the public sector in each of the years 2004 to 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15818/21]

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I thank the Minister. I confirm that I am in Leinster House. The Revised Estimate states that €308 million, or an increase of €76 million for the remainder of the academic year, as been allocated. The €332 million that was allocated before the devastating third wave, which hit us in late December and early January and continues today, was allocated before we knew how...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: If I might ask the Minister, I am trying to get at the outputs and outcomes of the investment. How many outbreaks have there been in schools since the beginning of 2021 or since the schools reopened?

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Basically, the Minister is saying the numbers are rising in the cohort of children who are going to school but they are not being infected within the school system. How do we know that for sure? It seems a coincidence that it happened after children went back to school. Do we know for sure that children are not being infected within the school environment? How can we tell?

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I have a question from Deputy Ó Laoghaire for the Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, relating to special education advocacy groups about staff working in special schools. They all say the progressing disability model, particularly the deployment of therapists out of special schools, is a bad idea, that it will not work, that it is unsuitable for children in special schools with complex...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: The Minister of State might keep us updated on that. Of the 1,423 new staff that were to be hired in the special needs education sector, how many of those have been hired as we speak?

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: If the Minister of State could update the committee on that on an ongoing basis it would be useful so that we could see where the money is going. We discussed transport earlier. Will the Minister, Deputy Foley, indicate if every child who needs it will get a seat on the school bus this year? The allocation under subhead A.11 covering grants to the education bodies working in the...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Minister-----

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: That is okay.

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I thank the Minister and join him in commending students on the huge work they have done this year and on everything they have done to maintain safety, working with other students to support them. The figures provided indicate that the general grant to the institutes of technology and universities has been cut by 9%. Is that correct? My next question is on CAO places and the pressure on...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: The Minister is right that students and third level institutions want to know we are doing everything possible to increase the number of places. We have predicted grades again this year and we need to make as many places as possible available at third level institutions. However, what students really want is transparency around the numbers. I see Deputy Ó Laoghaire is there and may...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: How many of the 5,000 places allocated last year were actually taken up or used?

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: It is important that we know how many places were taken up last year and the courses for which there was excess demand. The pressure that students have been under was referred to earlier. The way to alleviate pressure is to make sure there are extra places in the high-demand courses and also feed that through to the colleges to ensure that if infrastructure or extra tutors are needed, they...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: In the broader sense, when we are announcing money and doing the Estimates and so on, we need to follow through to make sure the outcomes of that make a real difference to students and the third level institutions.

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: This question is for the Minister of State. Given the revenue and surplus relating to the National Training Fund, is now not the time to invest in apprenticeships in order to increase the numbers and let apprenticeships be a driving force in the recovery after Covid? Is there anything in the Revised Estimates to deal with the huge backlog of apprentices waiting for off-the-job training?...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: There was a backlog before Covid. However, the current backlog is extremely serious. I ask the Minister of State to do everything he can and use the excess in the National Training Fund to ensure that the more than 6,000 apprenticeships to which I refer do not have to be extended beyond four years to six years or whatever. The Minister of State will be acutely aware of the knock-on...

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: May I bring one matter to the attention of the Minister?

Select Committee on Education and Skills: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 26 — Education (Revised)
Vote 45 — Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (Revised) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I refer to the increase in places for medicine. Concern has been expressed to me by students who did their leaving certificate in 2019, one of whom achieved eight H1 grades. They feel that because of the lack of spaces, they will be at a severe disadvantage if there is points inflation this year. In light of the pandemic, demand in the public health area and our need to educate more...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: The EU and Irish Unity - Planning and Preparing for Constitutional Change: Discussion (Resumed) (23 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I thank Professor Harvey and Mr. Bassett for this paper. It is enormously important and I refute some of the comments that have been made about it. There is real value in it because it raises key questions I have not seen raised anywhere else. In any papers that are written there are observations and certain editorial stuff, but there is real factual stuff here, for instance, around who...

Young People and Access to Further and Higher Education: Motion [Private Members] (11 Mar 2021)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I am sharing time with my colleagues and would appreciate being cut off after eight minutes. My thanks to Solidarity-People Before Profit for bringing forward this important motion. While it might contain some things that we have differences on, I wholeheartedly support the vast majority of it. The first point arises in terms of removing the barriers in place. I hear the Minister...