Results 4,401-4,420 of 5,087 for speaker:Kathleen Funchion

Education (Admission to School) Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: Deputy Collins is repeating what he said earlier. He is talking nonsense and he does not even know what amendment he is talking to. We are dealing with admissions policy. This is irrelevant.

Education (Admission to School) Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: Then speak to the amendment, rather than waffling on.

Education (Admission to School) Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I want to make two brief points. First, I welcome the fact that the Minister has listened and taken on board our suggestion. That is very helpful and, hopefully, we will able to get some resolution when we discuss it as a group again. Second, I would definitely not support anything that is in any way elitist particularly around the Irish language because I am always conscious of the fact...

Education (Admission to School) Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) (30 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I concur with Deputy Catherine Martin. It is our understanding that if we were to try to include amendments Nos. 75 to 80, inclusive, they would contradict each other and some of them would fall. I would have liked more time on the amendments to this section. I have spoken to the Irish language groups that are obviously the experts in this area and it is important for the children who...

Education (Admission to Schools) Bill 2016: Report Stage (Resumed) (29 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I am a bit torn on this one. It is certainly not because I have any love for religious institutions. I see where the Minister has come from and it is a massive step forward but, having listened to the debate, I agree with Deputies Boyd Barrett, Shortall and Catherine Martin on the complete separation of church and State. I understand what the Minister is trying to achieve in terms of...

Residential Tenancies (Student Rents, Rights and Protection) Bill 2018: Second Stage [Private Members] (29 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I commend my colleague, Deputy Eoin Ó Broin, for all of his work in this area. Everybody knows that there is a housing crisis. We speak about it regularly here. Sometimes the fact that students also require accommodation is forgotten about. A lot of the time students are in very substandard accommodation, as are many renters. In many cases people are afraid to bring any issue to...

Education (Admission to School) Bill 2016: Report Stage (29 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I welcome the amendment. We should be constructive when discussing Bills and amendments and we should speak to the amendment before us. I could say a good deal about special education in general and about some teachers carrying out certain functions in that there is a belief they could perhaps require additional training and support. This is a welcome provision, however, and it is good...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills: Barriers to Education Facing Vulnerable Groups: Discussion (29 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I apologise. I had leave for part of the meeting and did not hear some of the presentations. I appreciate that there has been much toing and froing, which has been a little unfair on the witnesses. I will not ask any specific questions. I just want to say that I agree with many of the sentiments expressed. One can see the difference in children at primary level who have access to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: World Vision Ireland: Discussion (24 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I am not part of the joint committee, but I am attending this meeting because last September I travelled to Uganda with World Vision, with Deputy James Lawless and Senator Neale Richmond, among others. I saw some of the very good work being done there. I was sceptical about going because I am sceptical about many things which involve fundraising where one cannot see exactly where the money...

Topical Issue Debate: Mental Health Services Provision (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I will send him the details. The first thing is that there is no response. I can send him copies of the emails and letters we have sent, but unfortunately there is very little of the other side of the story, with the exception of one or two people saying it does not fall into their area. Unfortunately that is a common theme in the HSE. It...

Topical Issue Debate: Mental Health Services Provision (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to take this issue. It concerns the conditions in the department of psychiatry in St. Luke's Hospital in Kilkenny, which serves both Carlow and Kilkenny. It now serves patients from Tipperary since the closure of St. Michael's Unit in Clonmel yet there has been no expansion in that service even though there has been a big increase in the...

Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: 38. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason guidance in special schools is not included in the career guidance review announced in January 2018 despite assurances from representatives of the Department of Education and Skills that it would be included. [22389/18]

Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: This question concerns career guidance in special schools. I wish to ask why it is not included in the review announced in January 2018, despite assurances from representatives of the Department of Education and Skills that it would be included.

Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: The Minister says that special schools were not excluded but there was a promise that they would be included in the terms of reference and that was certainly not the case. As it currently stands, there is no provision for guidance in special schools that teach the primary school curriculum. However, this completely ignores the fact that students up to the age of 18 attend these schools. It...

Priority Questions: Special Educational Needs (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: I thank the Minister. I welcome that statement and will come back to his officials in that regard. I wish to stress the point again that this is a chance for us to be inclusive, particularly in the aftermath of Ireland ratifying the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. All Members know there is a high level of unemployment among people with a disability. Access to...

Priority Questions: Disability Support Services Provision (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: The last point the Minister made is exactly the suggestion I was going to make. If there is a new scheme such as the national day scheme being considered the Minister should look to extend the current scheme. The school I referred to, the Enable Ireland Sandymount school programme, was funded by the parents of the children, with a reduced capacity when funding was withdrawn in 2010. It was...

Priority Questions: Disability Support Services Provision (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: The difficulty is that this is a voluntary scheme and while I am reluctant to say that schools should be compelled to provide it, there should be a back-up plan in place where a school is not participating so that parents are not left in limbo. It is almost June; the scheme is supposed to start at the start of July and the affected parents have no provision in place for this year. What does...

Priority Questions: Disability Support Services Provision (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: 36. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the rationale for the July provision being provided at a school's discretion; the steps he plans to take in cases in which a school is not willing to provide same (details supplied); and if he will meet parents of children that avail of the July provision in order to gain an understanding of the importance of this provision to the children....

Priority Questions: Disability Support Services Provision (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: The question speaks for itself. I am looking for the rationale for the July provision being provided at a school's discretion and the steps that the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Bruton, plans to take in a case where a school is not willing to provide the provision. This refers, in particular, to the Enable Ireland school in Sandymount. Will the Minister meet with parents from...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs Staff Contracts (22 May 2018)

Kathleen Funchion: 69. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills when SNAs and teaching staff on similar contracts will receive notification of their employment in schools for the 2018-19 school year. [22390/18]