Results 3,721-3,740 of 4,073 for speaker:Mary Mitchell O'Connor

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 50:In page 62, line 36, to delete "11" and substitute "12".

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 51:In page 68, between lines 31 and 32, to insert the following:"Amendment of section 14 of Act of 1992 85.Section 14 of the Act of 1992 is amended—(a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2):"(2A) The Minister and An tÚdarás shall not require the supply of information under subsection (2) and An tÚdarás shall not...

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 52:In page 68, to delete lines 32 to 40, and in page 69, to delete lines 1 to 18 and substitute the following:"Investigator and report 86.The Act of 1992 is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 20:"20.(1) Following consultation with An tÚdarás, the Minister may appoint a person (in this section referred to as an...

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 54:In page 77, after line 2, to insert the following: "PART 7 AMENDMENT OF CERTAIN ENACTMENTS TO PROVIDE FOR INVESTIGATION AND INFORMATION CHAPTER 1 Amendment of Act of 1940Investigator and report 93.The Act of 1940 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 29:"29A.(1) Following consultation with An tÚdarás, the Minister may appoint a...

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 55:In page 77, after line 2, to insert the following:"Information requested by Minister 94.The Act of 1940 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 29A (inserted by section 93): "29B.(1) The Institute or a Constituent School shall furnish to the Minister any information requested by the Minister concerning the performance by the Institute or a...

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 56:In page 77, after line 2, to insert the following: "CHAPTER 2 Amendment of Act of 1971Investigator and report 95.The Act of 1971 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 15:"15A.(1) Following consultation with An tÚdarás, the Minister may appoint a person (in this section referred to as an "investigator”) to carry out an...

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I move amendment No. 57:In page 77, after line 2, to insert the following:“Amendment of section 16 of Act of 1971 96.*Section 16 of the Act of 1971 is amended—(a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2):“(3) The Minister shall not require the supply of information under subsection (2) in respect of a matter specified by the Minister under...

Technological Universities Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (23 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I reciprocate the Deputy's thanks. I thank my colleagues, including Deputy Thomas Byrne in Fianna Fáil especially, Deputy Funchion of Sinn Féin, members of Labour and the Greens and the Independents, all of whom contributed. This is now a very strong Bill. I also thank in particular the officials, including Deirdre McDonnell, who did so much work on the Bill. I thank the Ceann...

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Second Stage (30 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I am honoured to be in this House to introduce the Technological Universities Bill 2015. I am very pleased to be able to introduce a much strengthened Bill to the House on foot of a comprehensive consultation process with key stakeholders and a very co-operative and informed debate in the Dáil. I hope all Senators will agree that this is a very important Bill for the future of higher...

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Second Stage (Resumed) (31 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I thank the Acting Chairman.

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Second Stage (Resumed) (31 Jan 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I thank everyone who has contributed to this debate. I have taken a note of what the Senators have said and the concerns that have been raised. I thank the Senators for their informed and interesting contributions to the Technological Universities Bill made yesterday and again today. I wholeheartedly agree with the views expressed regarding the high quality of institutes of technology. A...

Topical Issue Debate: Schools Property (1 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I am a neighbour of Clonkeen College. My home is a few hundred metres away. My neighbours' children are pupils in the school. Many former pupils of mine have been educated there. Clonkeen College is an outstanding school with an excellent reputation and offers a comprehensive and holistic education to all its students, including a wide range of sports such as football. I also want to...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Third Level Fees (6 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I thank Senator Lorraine Clifford-Lee for raising this matter. Internships are an increasingly important element of higher education programmes and are a means of strengthening the link between higher education and the workplace. They afford students the opportunity to apply their learning to a work environment, thereby enriching both the student and the workplace. In particular, academic...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Third Level Fees (6 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I thank the Senator for her remarks. Internship is becoming increasingly important. We will be seeing more of it and we will be encouraging it. I would like the students to be able to use the library. Certainly, I am not someone who would say that if one does not pay fees, one may not use the library. Given the very nature of third level education, library facilities must be available to...

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I have heard the contributions. The definition in the Bill was drafted by the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to the Government. It is the standardised legislative wording. This definition mirrors the interpretation of the term "student union" as set out in section 3 of the Universities Act 1997.

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I thank Senators Ruane, Higgins, Grace O'Sullivan, Gavan, Ó Ríordáin and Craughwell for raising the issue. I assure them we have heard the arguments and argued with the officials about what the best option is. We want the student voice to be heard in technological universities. I am hoping to go through some of the points the Senator made and show why we are rejecting them....

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I am going through the different points that Senators have made. Similarly, in section 82(5) of the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Act 2012, when referring to charters, it says, "In preparing a charter, the governing body of an Institute of Technology shall consult, in such manner as the governing body thinks appropriate, with the academic council ... and other...

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Again, I thank Senators, but I remain of the view that the current definition which is in line with the Universities Act 1997 and other relevant legislation is preferable. Therefore, I do not propose to accept the amendment.

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I am delighted to listen to this debate. I spoke to many Senators, including Senators Coffey and Grace O'Sullivan from Waterford. The move to establish technological universities was taken on foot of a recommendation of the Hunt report which set out the strategy for higher education until 2030. The technological university concept was a key part of the recommendations made in the report...

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I often heard that when students leave, they do not return. A technological university in Waterford and Carlow will strengthen the offer available to students who will be able to continue to masters and postgraduate level, including PhDs. While I know it is possible to do this now, we want to strengthen the offer. The functions of a technological university are listed in section 9, which...