Results 15,701-15,720 of 19,032 for speaker:Ruairi Quinn

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Assistance Fund Issues (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I have no plans at present to introduce a loan scheme for postgraduate students. A number of financial institutions offer loans to assist students with costs associated with their studies. Following discussions with my Department, with support and advice from the National Treasury Management Agency, a specific loan initiative was introduced by Bank of Ireland in 2012 to provide finance for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Staff Remuneration (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I propose to take Questions Nos. 152 to 154, inclusive, together. All Government Departments ceased to issue Payable Orders with effect from the 30th August 2013 under the Public Service Reform Plan. My Department issued a total of 247 Payable Orders in August 2013; 12 Payable Orders issued to serving primary/voluntary secondary school teachers; 165 Payable Orders issued to personnel paid...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Institutes of Technology Issues (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: DIT and the DIT Foundation have a target to raise €30m through philanthropy to support the redevelopment of listed buildings on the Grangegorman site and to target the provision of facilities that otherwise have no immediate source of funding. DIT approached the Dublin Catholic Archdiocese with a request to seek a contribution through philanthropy towards the restoration of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staffing (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The detailed arrangements regarding supplementary assignment arrangements for SNAs for the 2013/2014 school year are set out in Departmental Circular 0037/2013 which issued on 1 July 2013 and which is available on the Department's website at the following address: . With effect from 1 May 2013 once an SNA with a minimum of one year's service is notified by his/her employer that he/she is to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Council of Ireland (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The person referred to by the Deputy continues to receive salary from my Department. Queries regarding Garda vetting and teacher registration are a matter for the Teaching Council. The teacher in question should contact the Teaching Council in regard to those issues.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The Deputy is referring to resources allocated to schools under the General Allocation Model (GAM) of additional teaching supports, which are allocated to all Primary schools to cater for children with high incidence special educational needs. I wish to advise the Deputy that differing pupil teacher ratios are applied under the GAM in relation to boys, girls and mixed schools in order to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Staffing (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The policy of my Department is to ensure, as far as possible, that the Managerial Authorities of schools give priority to unemployed registered teachers who are fully qualified when filling vacant teaching posts. Thus my Department has issued a number of circulars addressing this issue in recent years. Under these circulars school Principal's must maintain a list of unemployed registered...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The school to which the Deputy refers is among a range of schools earmarked for delivery through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) process. The PPP process forms a central part of the Government's overall economic stimulus package. This specific school was identified for inclusion in the PPP process in May 2013. It is expected that procurement of the bundle of schools to which this...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Status (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I can confirm to the Deputy that my Department has been working closely with Meath County Council in relation to identifying and acquiring a suitable site for the development to which he has referred. A suitable site has been identified and negotiations are ongoing. Due to commercial sensitivities attaching to site acquisitions generally, I am not in a position to comment further on this...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: State Examinations Issues (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: The State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations including organising the holding of examinations, determining procedures in places where examinations are conducted including the supervision of examinations and making arrangements for the marking of work presented for examination and for appeals and rechecks. In...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Consultancy Contracts Expenditure (2 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department has not contracted any consultants in 2013 to advise on the possible sale of assets.

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: There will be scope for Deputy Donnelly to write lots of articles.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teaching Contracts (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: Changes to academic contracts were discussed and agreed in the context of negotiations on the Public Service Agreement 2010 – 2014 (Croke Park Agreement) and more recently the Public Service Stability Agreement 2013 – 2016 (Haddington Road Agreement). These changes have resulted in the delivery of additional hours by academic staff to facilitate educational activities, which...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Weight of Schoolbags (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department issued Circular M35/05 in 2005 to highlight the potential health hazard of overweight schoolbags and to outline a range of local measures that could be put in place to help alleviate the problem. The circular referred to the recommendations of the previously published report of the Working Group on the Weight of School Bags. This report acknowledged that many of the solutions...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staffing (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy will be aware, a new set of proposals for a public service agreement were put forward by the Labour Relations Commission which now form the Public Service Stability Agreement 2013-2016 (the Haddington Road Agreement). One aspect of this Agreement relates to supplementary assignment arrangements for Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) and as both Unions that represent SNAs namely,...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Services Provision (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I presume that the Deputy is referring specifically to the early intervention classes for children with autism in mainstream and special schools. Children with autism can enrol in these early intervention classes from the age of three. There are now some 76 early intervention classes in recognised primary and special schools and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) will...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staffing (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: There is no scheme administered by my Department offering internships for Special Needs Assistants. Job Bridge is a scheme operated and funded by the Department of Social Protection. Recognised schools and Education and Training Boards may choose to participate in the scheme if they wish. Circular 46/2011 (National Internship scheme) sets out the scheme as it applies in schools. An...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Site Acquisitions (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: I can confirm that the acquisition of a site for a new building for the school referred to by the Deputy is being progressed by my Department. Negotiations with the owners of suitable sites are ongoing. However, due to the commercially sensitive nature of these negotiations, I am not in a position to give further details at this time. However, once the acquisition of a site is finalised, a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Emergency Funding (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: My Department's Planning and Building Unit has no record of receiving an application for emergency funding from the school in question to replace their windows. Should an application be received it will be assessed and the school authorities will be notified of the outcome.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Schools Building Projects Applications (3 Oct 2013)

Ruairi Quinn: As the Deputy is aware, the school, referred to, has an application with my Department for capital funding for a replacement school building. Whilst the school, in question, has experienced some growth in pupil numbers in recent years, the school is aware that it is not located in an area which has been identified as an area of significant population growth. In view of the need to ensure...