Results 42,581-42,600 of 46,575 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Artificial Intelligence (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: My Department currently provides data and computing power to the research and academic community across many fields by funding the Irish Centre for High-End Computing as well as research and education bodies with their own computing facilities, and through membership of the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking. The Irish Centre for High End Computing (ICHEC) provides...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Research and Development (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: Membership of the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC) has directly benefited Irish SMEs. In particular EuroHPC has financially supported the SME Accelerator programme at the Irish Centre for High-End Computing under the European High-Performance Computing Competence Centre (EuroCC) initiative. EuroCC is an initiative by the Joint Undertaking to build a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Research and Development (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: Membership of the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC) has directly benefited the Irish research community. Working with Participating States, EuroHPC has built a world-leading ecosystem of supercomputers and related infrastructure in Europe. Through EuroHPC Ireland’s research community can access a number of world-class supercomputers far more powerful than...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: Only in exceptional cases can candidates who are under 23 be assessed without reference to their parents/guardians income or address, Article 21(3)(b) of the Student Grant Scheme refers. The assessment of a case of estrangement is carefully considered to ensure there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the exceptional circumstances pertaining in such cases genuinely exists. The...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: The full list of craft apprenticeships, along with the latest taught version of the syllabus of each programme; the date it was first published; the date of last review by QQI, is attached. The information which was being collated by SOLAS is now available and is set out in the attached table. As you will note from the table, 15 of 25 craft programme syllabi have proposed roll-outs in 2024....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: The Deputy’s question would be more appropriately directed to the Minister of the Environment, Climate and Communications as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) operates under the aegis of that Department.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (20 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: There has been no direct financial supports provided to purpose built student accommodation providers between 2000 and 2022 inclusive. The difficulties being faced by students in accessing affordable accommodation is something this Government is committed to addressing. In November 2022, I received Government approval and support for proposals to increase the supply of student...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Public Sector Pensions (21 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I remain strongly of the view that research staff in all higher education institutions across the sector should be able to access a public service pension scheme. As outlined in previous responses, my officials have submitted a business case to the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan and Reform to support access to the single public service pension scheme for those...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Fees (21 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: The Deputy will be aware that Higher Education Institutions are autonomous bodies; responsible for assessing student applications and determining the tuition fee payable by individual students. In this regard, as the Deputy will appreciate, it is not possible for my Department to offer guidance on the fee arrangements that may apply for individual students, such as those that may apply in the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Medical Research and Training (21 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 180 and 181 together. As the Deputy is aware the delivery of medical programmes is complex. The course content of medical programmes and curriculum followed is a matter for the individual medical schools and the regulator, the Medical Council. The Medical Council sets and monitors standards for undergraduate, and postgraduate medical programmes and the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (21 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien and I have asked our officials to engage on the decision of private student accommodation providers to move to 51-week leases. We recognise that while there may be a market for 51 week leases among some members of the student population, it is not desirable for the vast majority of third level students. We are working...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (22 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: In the pre-2016 model, tiling registration numbers were too low to consider a specialised apprentice programme to be viable. However, I intend to meet the Tiling Association of Ireland shortly who are exploring the possibility of developing a new tiling apprenticeship under the consortium-led model.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (22 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: Last month, I received Government approval for my Department's long-term student accommodation policy approach. The long term vision is to ensure that availability of student accommodation and digs do not act as a barrier to accessing higher education. This policy aims to enable options to mitigate demand for accommodation given the increased accessibility of HEIs across the regions through...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Farrell for this important question. As she knows, I recently received Government approval for an overarching policy approach for student accommodation in Ireland. This policy looks at a number of ways to stimulate supply of student accommodation, including standardised design, continued promotion of the rent-a-room scheme and recognition of the Government's commitment to...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: As the Deputy knows, on a number of occasions I have brought to Cabinet short-term policy approaches that we could take to get student accommodation activated, particularly where they had planning permission. More recently, I did bring that longer term policy approach. That had a number of elements, including the vacancy element. There is not much of a mystery here. For the first time in...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I am a little bit perplexed about the line of inquiry but we want to come at this from every possible angle. We know there are vacant properties in the regions and in many towns where HEIs are based. The Deputy is correct when she says it is not just for technological universities but for any universities, although I think it will be of particular benefit to our technological universities....

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I do not believe these are in that space. We need to look at every way of coming at this. I know the Deputy agrees on this. We want to build purpose-built student accommodation, whether in DCU or Maynooth, but we know that it takes time to get from an idea through design, planning and construction. There could be opportunities in the meantime to look at vacant stock. I want to cast the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I have been working closely with the Minister for housing, Deputy O'Brien, on this matter. I thank him and his Department and officials for their continued support and engagement. We both agree the actions of these providers is unacceptable. While a 51-week lease may suit some third level students - perhaps those who require to be in a university...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: I am not satisfied about the 51-week contract situation. I intend to reach out to the local authorities this week to ask them to carry out an urgent assessment and I intend to work with the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, on legislative change in the area. This highlights the need to be less reliant on the private market and to build more college-owned student accommodation. It is the reason we...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Accommodation (27 Feb 2024)

Simon Harris: It is the Deputy's job and duty to keep a watchful eye on this and she will do that well but by any objective measure we have seen an increase in college-owned student accommodation and in general student accommodation this college year compared to last year. We have seen more measures to help students with the cost of rent this year than last year and an increase in the student grant this...