Results 5,481-5,500 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — Ministerial Responsibilities: Ministerial Responsibilities (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Mr Ciarán Cannon T.D. has been appointed Minister of State in my Department and will have responsibility for the areas of skills and training, further education, educational disadvantage and school transport. Mr Seán Sherlock T.D. has also been assigned to my Department and will have responsibility for oversight of the implementation of the specific range of commitments in the Strategy for...

Written Answers — Coistí Gairmoideachais: Coistí Gairmoideachais (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Is mian liom a chur in iúl don Teachta gurb í an tSeirbhís um Cheapacháin Phoiblí a leagann amach na cáilíochtaí atá riachtanach chun Príomhfheidhmeannach buan a cheapadh ar Choiste Gairmoideachais (CGO). I measc na gcáilíochtaí sin tá riachtanas go mbeadh Gaeilge agus Béarla araon ag iarrthóir. Cruthaítear go bhfuil Gaeilge ag iarrthóir trí bhéaltriail inniúlachta a...

Written Answers — School Provision: School Provision (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: You will appreciate that at present new schools are only being opened where there is a demographic demand for them. Based on demographics it would appear that a new school is not required in the Dublin 12 area. The demand for such new schools therefore arises out of the desire for further choice of educational provision by parents in the area. Providing for such diversity of provision is...

Written Answers — Schools Building Projects: Schools Building Projects (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: An application under the Emergency Works Scheme was received from the school mentioned by the Deputy. The works included new traffic management measures and a new playground. The purpose of the Emergency Works Scheme is solely for unforeseen emergencies or to provide funding to facilitate inclusion and access for special needs pupils. An emergency is deemed to be a situation which poses an...

Written Answers — Schools Refurbishment: Schools Refurbishment (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 109 and 110 together. I understand that the schools referred to by the Deputy have submitted applications for the works in question under the 2011 Summer Works Scheme. Applications for funding under the scheme are being processed in my Department, as outlined in the Circular governing the operation of the Scheme, and the school authorities in question will be...

Written Answers — Physical Education Facilities: Physical Education Facilities (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: All schools are eligible to submit an application for major capital funding for sporting facilities to my Department. Any application received will be assessed in accordance with the published prioritisation criteria for large scale building projects. However, in light of the many demands on the capital budget of my Department, it is unlikely that a high priority will be assigned to such an...

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (22 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: An application to retain this child in school for an extra year has been made by the child's parents directly to the Department of Education and Skills. My Department has advised Special Schools that it will consider requests from schools who wish to retain students who are over 18 years of age, for an extra school year, in circumstances where they are following courses leading to...

Written Answers — Schools Refurbishment: Schools Refurbishment (23 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I understand that the school referred to by the Deputy has submitted an application for works under the 2011 Summer Works Scheme. Applications for funding under the scheme are being processed in my Department, as outlined in the Circular governing the operation of the Scheme, and the school authority in question will be notified of the decision on the application shortly.

Written Answers — Special Educational Needs: Special Educational Needs (23 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The home tuition scheme provides funding to parents to provide education at home for children who, for a number of reasons such as chronic illness, are unable to attend school. The scheme was extended in recent years to facilitate tuition for children awaiting a suitable educational placement and also to provide early educational intervention for preschool children with autism. I have...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (23 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The Public Service Pension Reduction (PSPR) is a once-off reduction applied to the gross annual pension of public service pensioners by reference to a set of rates and income bands. The Financial Emergency Measure in the Public Interest Act 2010 (No. 38 of 2010) gave effect to PSPR. The measure does not alter in any way other aspects of Public Service Pensions so all regulations and...

Written Answers — School Staffing: School Staffing (23 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The process of allocating teaching resources to schools for 2011/2012 and the arrangements for filling vacant or new teaching posts takes place in the context of the Programme for National Recovery, the EU/IMF Programme of Support for Ireland and the Public Service Agreement 2010/2014. It is necessary for my Department to exercise additional control and reporting measures this year to ensure...

Written Answers — Institutional Child Abuse: Institutional Child Abuse (23 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The Education Finance Board is an independent statutory body established pursuant to the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Amendment) Act, 2005. My officials have made enquiries of the Board who advise that there has been a significant increase in the number of applications received which has given rise to an inevitable and regrettable increased delay in clearing payments to...

School Staffing (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I do not propose to give any specific commitment at this point, as it is clearly a matter that I must consider with my colleagues in Cabinet having regard to the position in respect of public service numbers and payroll costs generally. I note that the National Recovery Plan 2011-2014 makes provision for a net increase of just over 2,000 posts across the education sector between the end of...

School Staffing (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I thank the Deputy for his good wishes, which I appreciate. We must respond to growth in demographics in the context of overall numbers, but I do not want to pre-empt a decision between the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael Noonan, the Minister, Deputy Brendan Howlin, and myself. The figures have been set out and we intend to proceed on that basis. At the end of 2011, we will review the...

School Staffing (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I am committed to maintaining the line established in respect of protecting and ring-fencing the education budget against the background of growing population numbers. However, all of this must be predicated on the reality that we are in a disastrous economic situation, the country is effectively in receivership and we are not in control of our financial affairs. We do not know what is...

School Staffing (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I do. I am pleased to note that the Teachers Union of Ireland, TUI, has endorsed the recognition of the Croke Park agreement in yesterday's results, which were published today. Where the agreement is operational in the secondary sector, some 70% or so of teachers endorse the recognition of the Croke Park agreement as a de facto agreement on the ground.

Special Educational Needs (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: The programme for Government clearly states that education will be a priority for this Government and that we will endeavour to protect and enhance the educational experience of children, young people and students. To this end, we will endeavour to protect front line services in education. However, the fiscal position is difficult and the country is effectively in receivership. It is...

Special Educational Needs (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: I thank the Deputy for his good wishes. I recognise the extraordinary burden that falls on the shoulders of parents who have children with special needs whom they love dearly. I welcome suggestions from school boards of management and parents associations that deal with young people in this category on how best resources can be allocated. The numbers are fixed. The sooner we can get...

Special Educational Needs (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: There has to be a lead in time to prepare for the start of the academic year in September. That is required for consultation, advice and other processes in order that children with special needs are identified and SNAs are matched to them. The date is 18 March but I am prepared to examine this to see if it can be pushed out. I am not fully aware of the constraints but I will consult with...

Regional Technical Colleges (24 Mar 2011)

Ruairi Quinn: Policy for higher education needs to be directed at supporting the development of a higher education system of the highest quality and responsiveness in meeting the needs of the 21st century economy and society. One of the major factors associated with the positive performance of higher education systems internationally is institutional diversity. I agree with the analysis and conclusion of...