Results 9,201-9,220 of 17,531 for speaker:Jan O'Sullivan

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Numeracy Levels (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Maths Recovery is a licensed programme which has been made available to over 300 primary schools through the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST). PDST is currently liaising with the programme providers to ensure continued and adequate support for DEIS schools to access the Maths Recovery programme. In addition, through the support services and the Education Centre...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Agencies Staff Remuneration (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: The salaries for posts of chief executive officer (CEO) are calculated in accordance with specific salary scales. It should be noted that for posts affected by the Haddington Road Agreement, salaries have been cut by 5.5% for those earning between €65,000 and €80,000, 8% for those earning between €80,000 and €150,000, 9% for employees on €150,000 to...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I thank Senators for their words of welcome. This is the first education Bill I have dealt with as Minister for Education and Skills. I am delighted to be in the Seanad to take Committee Stage of the Bill which, as Members know, was introduced by my colleague, the former Minister, Deputy Ruairí Quinn. My previous engagement with the Seanad was good and I look forward to the many fine...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: It will present an opportunity for that to happen. A number of consortiums are putting forward proposals on a technological university. I am probably straying outside the scope of the Bill. For this piece of legislation, one of the criteria is that at least 40% of the provider's student enrolment in the State must comprise students from outside the European Union who are lawfully in the...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: No, I refer to Senator Barrett's proposal in amendment No. 1 that we specify the level-----

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: We will deal with the reference to "person" later. Amendment No. 1 provides for the amendment of the Bill to state: “ “education provider” means for the purposes of this legislation an educational institution in the State which provides a programme of education and training at levels 7, 8, 9 and 10 of the National Qualifications Framework;”.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: No, because it comes later. This amendment deals with the levels on the framework, and I do not accept that we should specify levels in the Bill.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: We will come to it in a later amendment.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Have I got the groupings right? Are we dealing with just amendments Nos. 1 and 11?

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Amendment No. 6 refers to "person".

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I meant to say amendment No. 8, which proposes to delete “person” and substitute “higher education institution”.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: It is not just at the whim of the Minister. There are criteria that such a body would have to fulfil, including that the authority must make awards to at least doctoral degree level. It is therefore quite constrained.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: It is quite constrained. Ministers have powers to do lots of things but they are within strict parameters. I have no doubt that whoever is Minister for Education and Skills will exercise his or her powers responsibly, but he or she will have to exercise them within the parameters of the legislation. We make lots of legislation across many areas where Ministers have powers, but they have to...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Some broad issues have been raised. Perhaps I might start with the last issue raised by Senator John Crown. As he is aware, there has been considerable reform in higher education generally in terms of institutions coming together and working collaboratively and forming clusters in different parts of the country in the context of the proposed technological universities. He has proposed a...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: There are issues of concern to do with human rights, but I wish to focus particularly on the proposed amendments. Amendment No. 7 is a Government amendment which seeks to remove a superfluous cross-reference to subsection (1). A similar response can be given on amendment No. 2 which deals with the qualifications framework. The definitions and terminology used to describe the awarding...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Yes. The Senator made a point generally about definitions, but I am advised that this is the correct terminology. However, I am willing to look at it again before Report Stage. There are a number of later amendments at which I am willing to look again before Report Stage, but I cannot accept the proposals made in this instance. Amendment No. 6 would have the effect of deleting the...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I argue that it is a valid purpose to market what one provides, whether it is a university or anybody else, as one has to tell people what one actually offers. I am not proposing to accept that amendment either.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: Does the Senator have a better term than it.

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I thank the Senator for her contribution. I agree that we need to ensure parents and the wider school community are given as much information as possible regarding the funds available to schools. They need to be accountable to parents and we need greater levels of engagement, communication and transparency in how schools serve their community. The Government approved in March the drafting...

Seanad: Education (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (23 Sep 2014)

Jan O'Sullivan: I do not propose to accept amendment No. 12 as I consider the period of three months to be reasonable. On amendment No. 13, it is not appropriate that one particular interest group, namely, the universities, should be consulted. I will, however, consider the second element of the amendment which proposes that the Minister should cause the observations of an tÚdarás, given under...