Results 521-540 of 623 for speaker:Síle de Valera

School Transport. (24 May 2005)

Síle de Valera: I share Deputy Enright's concern in regard to her final point and it is the reason I have put so much emphasis on the need for counselling. All Members agree such counselling will be vital in the coming months and beyond for many of the pupils affected. The period before the State examinations is particularly difficult for students in normal circumstances. My Department is engaged in ongoing...

School Transport. (24 May 2005)

Síle de Valera: To alleviate the fears of Deputies with regard to maintenance, the structure of buses is tested as part of the process of determining roadworthiness. My information is that the fleet no longer includes Singapore buses. Bus speeds are controlled in that they cannot go faster than a certain limit determined by the proper procedures for driving a school bus.

Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Amendment) Bill 2005: Second Stage (Resumed). (28 Apr 2005)

Síle de Valera: I thank Deputies for their contributions. This has been a responsible debate, which shows a great understanding of the sensitivity of the issue among Deputies. We will discuss the issues raised by Deputies in much greater detail on Committee Stage. I wish to touch on the role of the Department of Education and Science as a respondent before the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, and on...

Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (Amendment) Bill 2005: Referral to Select Committee. (28 Apr 2005)

Síle de Valera: I move: That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Education and Science, in accordance with Standing Order 120(1) and paragraph 1(a)(i) of the Orders of Reference of that committee.

Class Sizes: Motion (Resumed). (27 Apr 2005)

Síle de Valera: Although I did not agree with Deputy Gogarty, I was nearly beginning to feel sorry for him. He was rounded on by members of the Labour Party and Fine Gael, yet we are led to believe these are the likely coalition partners of a future Government. It says a lot for the likely approach to education by the Opposition parties, among which there is obviously no coherence or cohesiveness. Education...

Class Sizes: Motion (Resumed). (27 Apr 2005)

Síle de Valera: ——on the improvement of school buildings and we will continue to do that.

Class Sizes: Motion (Resumed). (27 Apr 2005)

Síle de Valera: We all know that a Government party loss in a by-election does not mean a loss for it in a general election, as has been proved in every general election in modern times.

Class Sizes: Motion (Resumed). (27 Apr 2005)

Síle de Valera: Does the Deputy agree with an increase in tax to provide further funding for education? That was an interesting suggestion.

Seanad: Schools Refurbishment. (9 Mar 2005)

Síle de Valera: I thank the Senator for affording me the opportunity of outlining the proposals of my Department regarding the proposed refurbishment project at Ballymahon vocational school, County Longford. The building unit of my Department received an application from County Longford Vocational Education Committee for the refurbishment of the existing building at Ballymahon vocational school and the...

School Transport. (9 Mar 2005)

Síle de Valera: Bus Éireann, which administers the school transport scheme locally on behalf of the Department of Education and Science, is responsible for the day-to-day operation of school bus services. Routes are determined on the basis of numbers of eligible pupils in particular areas, road networks, distance guidelines and other operational factors. As a rule primary school transport routes are planned...

School Transport. (9 Mar 2005)

Síle de Valera: All these issues have been reviewed in recent years. While I am subject to correction on the date, I understand it was 2001 when a complete review was undertaken on distances and improvements on eligibility were made, allowing more people to avail of the service. The rules and regulations on distance have been made easier. The annual cost of providing school transport stands at €100 million...

School Transport. (9 Mar 2005)

Síle de Valera: Deputy Neville's parliamentary question was specific and he did not provide the details of the families involved. The Department understands three families are involved. One family resides 4 km, 2.5 miles, from Ballingarry national school and 0.64 km, less than half a mile, from the route of the existing service. The second family resides 3.8 km from the national school and under 0.5 km from...

School Transport. (9 Mar 2005)

Síle de Valera: Sadly, there is nothing simple about the catchment areas debate, as I have pointed out. The question of catchment areas impacts on education policy throughout the Department. There would also have to be much discussion in regard to the building programme and so on. We have a very good service considering 140,000 students travel on a daily basis. There are 5,000 routes. The annual cost of the...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects. (2 Mar 2005)

Síle de Valera: I thank Senator Terry for the opportunity to outline the proposals of the Department of Education and Science for the Castleknock Educate Together national school and the position on the lands at Beechpark Avenue. The new school project for the national school is due to proceed to tender and construction within the next 12 to 15 months. It will be a 16 classroom school which will also have a...

Special Educational Needs: Motion (Resumed). (23 Feb 2005)

Síle de Valera: I thank everybody who has contributed to the debate on these important issues. I am heartened by the acknowledgement by many Deputies that the provision of educational services for children with special educational needs has improved greatly in recent years. It is important to outline in detail the scope of these improvements. While accepting that more can and will be done in this area, it is...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects. (22 Feb 2005)

Síle de Valera: The Minister, Deputy Hanafin, apologises for not being able to be present for the debate. She is, however, taking a particular interest in this case. I thank Senator O'Toole for bringing it to the attention of the Seanad. He made a plea for the dignity of the students and highlighted the fact that some if not all of them have considerable or multiple disabilities. From his experience in the...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects. (22 Feb 2005)

Síle de Valera: I would welcome any further information the Senator could bring to bear on this issue. He indicated his concern that schools of this kind may not have the necessary political clout. I wish to put his mind at rest in that regard. Cases such as that to which he refers are of significant importance to us in terms of identifying what we might do to alleviate the great difficulties experienced by...

Seanad: Water and Sewerage Schemes. (28 Oct 2004)

Síle de Valera: I thank the Senator for raising this matter on the Adjournment and apologise for the absence of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Roche, who cannot be here. The provision of modern environmental infrastructure to support social and economic objectives has been a major focus of Department spending over the past few years. There has been unprecedented...

Seanad: Schools of Music. (28 Oct 2004)

Síle de Valera: I thank Senator Ross for raising this matter on the Adjournment and for affording me the opportunity to clarify the position of my Department concerning the school of music at the Waterford Institute of Technology. The WIT has quite a large music school with approximately 30 staff providing tuition to over 800 students, mainly at junior levels but with a small third level component. The...

Seanad: Schools of Music. (28 Oct 2004)

Síle de Valera: I understand the point made by the Senator. In my reply I noted that the Department's provisional budget has already been allocated to the WIT. It is my understanding that the distribution of the funding allocated by each institute to the individual schools and departments is the responsibility of those institutes. I will make further inquiries and send on any resulting information directly...