Results 481-500 of 3,374 for speaker:Shane Cassells

Public Accounts Committee: 2015 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (23 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: I compliment Mr. Ó Foghlú and the work he is doing to broaden the school base. I have two children in a community national school, both being reared as Catholics but enjoying the experience of a broad education in the fullest sense within the Ard Rí community national school. I hope that a site will be secured for the building of that school so that it can stop using the...

Money Advice and Budgeting Service and Citizens Information Centres: Motion (28 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: I welcome the opportunity to speak to the motion. Three weeks ago, Angela Black and members of the Citizens Information Board, CIB, and MABS appeared before the Joint Committee on Public Petitions. Very few parliamentarians turned up that day, although Deputy Denise Mitchell was one of the few. The quality of the service we discussed was acknowledged by us all as second to none. That...

Written Answers — Department of Children and Youth Affairs: Child Care Services Provision (28 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: 33. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will address the anomaly created under the affordable child care scheme whereby the places of children who are currently availing of essential early intervention supports under CCS and whose parents will not meet the eligibility criteria for ACS will no longer be funded; the way the early intervention needs of this group of...

Report of the Committee of Public Accounts re National Asset Management Agency’s sale of Project Eagle: Motion (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: I thank the Acting Chairman. I express my thanks to the Chairman, Deputy Sean Fleming, for his stewardship of the Committee of Public Accounts and for the report. I also thank fellow committee members and all the staff. As a new Deputy, it was an intriguing report to work on and the financial and political intrigue that evolved as the process went on showed how many players were involved....

Report of the Committee of Public Accounts re National Asset Management Agency’s sale of Project Eagle: Motion (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: The Department of Finance officials were also well able to defend themselves and NAMA. If one reads the transcripts of those hearings, one would see a very certain point emanating from those meetings. When we came to our conclusions about procedurally inappropriate events, the language was very thin. It could have been a lot harder. Daniel McConnell from the Irish Examinerreported after...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Deputy Cullinane has made his point so we will move on.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: The point is made. The next item is No. 377C, correspondence attaching to the Comptroller and Auditor General's special report No. 97 on the administration and collection of motor tax.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Can we note the item and discuss it as part of our work programme which is coming back tomorrow? That is noted. We move on to statements and accounts received since the last meeting. These are reports, statements and accounts of bodies audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General which have been laid since last week and they are coming up on the screens now.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Can we note all of those? Noted. Item No. 5 is the work programme, a copy of which is on screens. Can we agree to finalise that tomorrow? Agreed. People were asking about the appearance of Bord na gCon which will be on 4 May and the Department of Justice and Equality will appear on 11 May. Is that noted? Noted.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Yes. There is a matter still to be confirmed on 18 May. There being no other business, at this stage we will suspend for a minute while the witnesses take their seats.

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Last week we met representatives of the Department of Education and Skills and tomorrow we will meet with the six higher education institutions. We are here today to examine the Higher Education Authority financial statements for 2015. The HEA is responsible for the strategic development of the Irish higher education and research system and its purpose is to create a coherent system of...

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: I thank Mr. McCarthy. I call on Dr. Love to make his statement.

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: I thank Dr. Love. Our lead speaker today is Deputy Farrell. I propose that he will have 20 minutes to question the witnesses, if he needs that much, and all other members will have ten minutes. This will help to ensure that we give everyone an opportunity to ask questions and we have the best meeting possible. The clerk and I will keep an eye on the clock and advise members when there are...

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: I thank the Chairman and wish Dr. Love and all who work with him the best in their role. Touching on staffing issues within the third level sector at the moment, obviously expenditure is the key word. Everybody is seeking increased expenditure and investment in terms of attainment for students. Looking at the staffing numbers in certain universities and institutes of technology over the...

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: That is a big fear.

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: In 2010, a HEA report on retention and drop-out rates cited prior educational attainment as having the greatest influence on successful progression. Some of the HEA's reports cited a drop-out figure of one in six. In particular, the HEA examined the drop-out rate among those who got third level places after attaining between 150 and 300 points but did not progress to their second years. I...

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Is this purely down to funding or should there be a broader discussion? We have one of the highest participation rates in higher education in Europe. It increased from 20% in the 1980s to 58% now. Is the system best suited to the needs of everyone who participates? Is there a correlation between that and participation in further education courses dropping from 36,000 to 32,000 in the same...

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: It was noted that some of the highest drop-out rates were in engineering and computer science courses. Must there be a broader discussion with the Department of Education and Skills on people possibly being driven into undergraduate courses that do not suit their needs?

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: The USI will be across the road later this week or next week over income contingent loans, ICLs, and the fear that they will incentivise graduate emigration, which would undermine the effectiveness of an ICL scheme. Does Dr. Love agree with this analysis?

Public Accounts Committee: HEA - Financial Statement 2015 (29 Mar 2017)

Shane Cassells: Dr. Love does not believe that there would be higher defaults under such a scheme.