Results 3,261-3,280 of 45,291 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: Firstly, I would like to inform the Deputy that from this academic year, the income threshold to avail of a Student Contribution grant has been increased from €62,000 to €100,000, opening the Scheme up to a significant number of additional students and their families. In addition for 2023/2024 the Student Contribution charge has been reduced by €1000 for free fees...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Budget 2024 (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: I am actively prioritising the supply and affordability of student accommodation, in recognition of the challenges our students are facing. Through “Housing for All”, the Government has approved development of policy and provision of funding to increase the supply of purpose-built student accommodation. Student accommodation is a capital funding allocation which will be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Costs (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The Deputy will be aware that Budget 2024 contains a package of measures to support households with the cost of living. These include a number of measures targeted at further and higher education students and their families. These include:A €1,000 reduction in the student contribution fee for higher education students eligible for the free fees initiative;An increase to the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Staff (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: In November 2022, I appointed Dr Andrea Johnson and Mr David Cagney to undertake an independent National Review of State Supports for PhD Researchers. This is the first time that State supports for PhD students have been considered holistically in this manner. Of the approximately 10,000 PhD students currently enrolled across the higher education sector, 4,000 undertake their studies using...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The National Development Plan (NDP) published in 2021 provided clarity on Departmental capital ceilings for the period 2022 – 2025. A dedicated capital envelope was established for the Further Education and Training (FET) sector, amounting to €300m over the decade 2018-2027. Available funding has increased from €5.5 million in 2018 to €17.5 million in 2020 and a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: Talent development remains vital for our workforce. One of my core objectives is strengthening our skills ecosystem to ensure it has the agility and flexibility to adapt to changing priorities in the skills and workforce development landscape - including increasingly rapid, technologically driven changes in the world of work. These changes place a premium on supporting individuals and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Energy Conservation (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: An Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation Pathfinder Programme (EEDPP) in Higher Education was first introduced in 2020 and is co-funded by my Department and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) under Project Ireland 2040, and administered through the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and Higher Education Authority (HEA). The purpose of the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The Student Grant Scheme is administered by the centralised national grant awarding authority SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland) on behalf of my Department. SUSI regularly reviews their systems, processes and service to identify improvements in service delivery and have made significant strides in this regard in recent years, through for example the development of an online student...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: Louth Meath ETB (LMETB) put forward a proposal under the Strategic Infrastructure Upgrade Fund (SIUF), which I announced in February 2022, for multipurpose tertiary facilities for Drogheda Institute for Further Education (DIFE). The primary purpose of the SIUF is to support ETB capital projects that will upgrade existing FET infrastructure and provide a high quality teaching and learning...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: In recognition of the need to increase the supply of student accommodation, my Department is developing policy responses to stimulate the development of new and additional student accommodation for public higher education institutions. This landmark policy response will, for the first time, see the State providing financial support in the construction of student accommodation, and underpins...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Costs (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The Deputy will be aware that Budget 2024 contains a package of measures to support households with the cost of living. These cost of living measures include a €1,000 reduction in the student contribution fee for higher education students applies to those students who are eligible for the free fees initiative which operates within the State. Under the Free Fees Initiative...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for raising this question. The Deputy will be aware that late last year I was very happy to announce that Dublin Dun Laoghaire ETBs (DDLETB) proposal for Fingal/Swords under the FET College of the Future Major Projects fund was successful at the first stage of the assessment process. The proposal put forward by DDLETB is to transform FET provision in the area by adding...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The fourth National Access Plan (NAP) was published in August 2022 and is a seven-year plan. The plan aligns with and builds on the wider ambitions of the Programme for Government to provide accessible, affordable education to all citizens. A full midterm review of the NAP will take place in 2025. Since the launch of the plan a number of measures have been progressed including:- Additional...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Tribunals of Inquiry (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: There are no tribunals of inquiry or commissions of investigation operating under the remit of my Department.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Budget 2024 (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: I am once again providing a significant package of measures to support students. We acknowledge that cost is a barrier to education and we’re continuing to break down that barrier and make further and higher education more accessible for more people. For the second year in a row, I have reduced the student contribution fee by €1,000 for undergraduate students eligible for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for the centralised student grant awarding authority SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland) to determine. For student grant purposes, students are categorised according to their circumstances either as students dependent on parents or a legal guardian, or as independent mature students. A student may be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: Under the terms of the Student Grant Scheme, grant assistance is awarded to eligible students attending an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those relating to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means. The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for the centralised student grant awarding authority SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland) to determine. With regard to the student referred to by the Deputy, my officials have advised me that this application has been reviewed by SUSI and SUSI has been in contact with the student in question to outline...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for raising this question. The Deputy will be aware that late last year I was very happy to announce that Kerry ETB's (KETB) proposal for Killarney under the FET College of the Future Major Projects fund was successful at the first stage of the assessment process. The proposal put forward by KETB is to transform FET provision in Killarney. This is a really exciting...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Staff (19 Oct 2023)

Simon Harris: The issue of academic career precarity is and will remain an important element of the work of my Department. As announced in the recent Budget, an additional €193 million in funding is being provided over 2023 and 2024 to the Higher Education sector. This includes some €60m under the Funding the Future policy framework to build capacity and to ensure the sector is funded...