Results 1,061-1,080 of 3,797 for speaker:Ciarán Cannon

Written Answers — Employment Support Services: Employment Support Services (19 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: In the Programme for Government we undertook to introduce a better approach to how the State engages with and supports the unemployed to get back into the workforce. The approach set out in Pathways to Work is to build on existing Government policies to ensure that as many new job opportunities as possible are filled by those on the Live Register. Pathways to Work points out that at a time...

Written Answers — FÁS Training Programmes: FÁS Training Programmes (19 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: I propose to take questions Nos. 82 and 83 together. The Local Training Initiative (LTI) programme is a training intervention designed to offer significant additional supports to enable socially excluded persons to avail of FÁS training. The FAS budget contains a sum of €33.406m for LTIs in 2012. A national review of LTI programmes is being undertaken in 2012 to ensure the continuing...

Written Answers — Adult Education: Adult Education (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: Under the Programme for Government, this Government will make literacy and basic workplace skills a national priority and drive the integration of literacy into a wider variety of further education and training programmes as part of the establishment of SOLAS. My Department recently published new operational guidelines for adult literacy and community education provision which highlighted...

Written Answers — School Transport: School Transport (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: Changes to school transport services were announced in the 2011 Budget and derive from recommendations made in the Value for Money Review of the scheme. These changes included the requirement that a minimum of 10 eligible pupils, residing in a distinct locality, would be required to retain or establish a school transport service from the commencement of the 2011/12 school year. Decisions in...

Written Answers — FÁS Training Programmes: FÁS Training Programmes (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: In 2012, at a time of reducing resources, my Department will fund over 450,000 education and training places across the range of provision in the higher education, further education and training sectors. In addition, FAS and the VECs have been requested to prioritise the long-term unemployed in their 2012 provision. Interim referral protocols have also been agreed, which will facilitate the...

Written Answers — Apprenticeship Programmes: Apprenticeship Programmes (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: The information requested by the deputy on the number of apprentices on the live register is not available to FÁS. However, the number of apprentices who were notified to FÁS as redundant, and are recorded on the FÁS apprenticeship database at the 31st March 2012, is 4,704. Of this group, there are 2,183 who have not reached the minimum qualifying standard in off-the-job training, and...

Written Answers — Apprenticeship Programmes: Apprenticeship Programmes (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: I understand that the number of apprentices who had a status of redundant at any time during the period 1/1/2008 and the 20/4/2012, and who have completed their FAS apprenticeship training and have been awarded the FETAC Advanced Certificate- Craft is 3,620. Furthermore, I am informed that a further 43 individuals have completed their apprenticeship and are currently waiting the Award of the...

Written Answers — Courses Accreditation: Courses Accreditation (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: I understand that Apprentices, who have previous trade related work experience and or trade related national or international qualifications, may apply for a training phase exemption up to and including Phase 5 of an apprenticeship programme by completing an Exemptions Application Form and submitting with a portfolio of evidence to FÁS for consideration. The recently announced Government...

Written Answers — FÁS Training Programmes: FÁS Training Programmes (24 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: Following on from the successful outcomes of the Labour Market Activation Fund which commenced in 2010 and concluded last year, funding of €20 million has been allocated from the National Training Fund in 2012 for a new Labour Market Education and Training Fund, which will be managed by FÁS and will deliver up to 6,500 education and training places. FÁS is currently developing proposals...

Written Answers — Departmental Agencies: Departmental Agencies (25 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: I propose to take Questions Nos. 64 and 66 together. Following the Government Decision to create SOLAS, an Implementation Group was set up to establish SOLAS. I am chairing this Group and its membership includes representatives from the Department of Education and Skills, FÁS, the Irish Vocational Education Association and the Department of Social Protection. The Group has been meeting...

Written Answers — FÁS Training Programmes: FÁS Training Programmes (25 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: At present further education is delivered by the Vocational Education Committees while general training is delivered by FÁS Training Services. As part of its annual planning exercise to ensure that its courses, and the courses it procures, remain relevant to the needs of an evolving labour market and to the needs of its clients, FÁS reviews the training provision for which it has a...

Written Answers — FÁS Training Programmes: FÁS Training Programmes (25 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: The Standards Based Apprenticeship Programme is a demand led alternance training and education programme for employed apprentices. I understand that based on previous years' experience, the anticipated total apprenticeship registration in 2012 is expected to be approximately 1,200. The number of apprentices who have been registered by employers by trade in the three months to 31/3/2012 is 389...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: Having consulted the officials, the Deputy's assessment of the legislation as it stands now is correct in the context of the alterations being made in terms of the ages of the children and how that dictates the entitlement to these supports from the State. None of the amendments impinges negatively in any way upon the provision whereby the payment will continue after the death of a spouse.

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: Which element does the Deputy wish to have clarified?

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: The current arrangement is that the arrangements that applied in the past will continue.

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: I understand that it was always a part of the provision that where a person was incarcerated, the payment was payable to that person upon release. Therefore, that will continue under the new legislation. There is no change to that provision.

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: On the finer points of the drafting of the Bill and the definition of "detention" to which the Deputy referred earlier, the Department will respond to the Deputy once clarification is sought from those who drafted the Bill. As regards the release of prisoners, it is my understanding the reason for the four-week period is to allow for the spouse to return to the family home on release from...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: The conditions of the scheme dictate that a person in prison is deemed to be separated from his or her family unit. Once a person leaves prison and returns to the family home, the four week transitional period is available. On the other hand, if a person does not return to the family home, in order for the lone parent family allowance to continue, the lone parent claiming the allowance will...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: The Minister is sympathetic to the thinking behind this amendment which I assume is to provide for better authentication of the identity of persons for electoral register and voting purposes. It would be premature at this stage to extend the use of PPS numbers to this area without first examining the range of important issues involved. Given the range of privacy and data protection issues...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (26 Apr 2012)

Ciarán Cannon: I move amendment No. 13: In page 6, before section 8, but in Part 2, to insert the following new section: 8.—Section 2(1) of the Principal Act is amended— (a) by substituting the following definition for the definition of "reckonable earnings" (amended by section 13 of the Act of 2011): " 'reckonable earnings' means, subject to section 13(2)(da)— (a) in the case of an employed...