Results 6,781-6,800 of 45,495 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: Current skills provision in this area covers the entire tertiary education system. A dynamic and evolving economy will always have skills demands and challenges. Our imperative is to ensure agility and responsiveness in the skills ecosystem. Through 2022 Ireland, in partnership with the OECD, is reviewing Ireland’s skills strategies, policies and approaches to help us ensure that our...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank the committee for the opportunity to join in this important discussion today on how we align education in Ireland with the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, UNCRPD. I want to commend the work of the Joint Committee of Disability Matters and I thank the members for the work they are doing in applying such a focus to this issue. It is really important that the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy. I note her genuinely interest in this area. She raised several issues. I am pleased to hear that the issue experienced by the individual to whom she referred was resolved. I am still frustrated that it occurred. The fund for students with disabilities is meant to be student-centred. In general, the feedback I get is that it is. If the person in question would like...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: Correct.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: The Senator makes a valid point. I am thinking of our experience where we rolled out training around consent and taking a zero-tolerance approach to sexual harassment. As a result of putting a real laser focus on that there has been a massive increase in staff going for training. I think the Senator is right. Under the new HEA Bill, which will hopefully become the HEA Act in autumn, it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Ellis. Yes, for the first time, people with intellectual disabilities will be there as a priority group. We obviously will be working with the National Disability Authority, as the Deputy rightly said, around definitions and accuracy around this. I have in front of me figures from a document the National Disability Authority, which, by the way, does incredible work, gave to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Cairns for her questions. I will take them in sequence. The issue of people leaving before completion or dropping out of education is key. I am being very blunt about this. It is flattering the targets and our reporting against them. We are, objectively, making progress on progress on access, albeit that the figures are not as high as they need to be. However, we are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: That is an important thing to push for and we all share a view on the need to move on that. We are moving on it. We decided not to wait for the budget to put in place money for PATH 4 to support students in colleges in September. All students who are starting or returning to college, as well as all students, including students with a disability, will see the benefit of the universal design...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank Senator Seery Kearney for her contribution and her work in this area. There is quite a lot in it so let me delve in. The Senator is beyond right in regard to the whole issue of outcomes and output. This is probably more generally across the public service but we have to stop measuring just what we are putting in and start measuring what comes out the other side. I am talking about...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: Yes, that is exactly right. We are at the table, as are all the other relevant Departments and the anchor for that discussion now is the Indecon report around the cost of disability and how we respond to that. Deputy Rabbitte will deliver the Government's response but we are all feeding into it. In regard to part time courses, it is important that the Senator provided a balance to the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I think that is right. The good news is we are not starting from scratch on this. I was at Longford Women’s Link recently, which is a superb organisation. In rural County Longford, I met women completing degree programmes entirely remotely, but Quality and Qualifications Ireland, QQI, accredited and the likes with, I think, the South East Technological University and possibly...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: Rigorous.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for following me around and for her contribution. They are all very valid and serious issues she raised. First, I was going to make the point that Catherine’s Law was an example. The Deputy knows Catherine Gallagher and I have met her as well when I went to pay tribute to her. It is an example of how joined-up thinking and a bit of common sense is needed and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: The Senator was not rambling. She was very cogent on a lot of issues. I thank the Senator for her work with the Minster of State, Deputy Niall Collins, and with me in highlighting the need for the programme for access to higher education, PATH. I acknowledge the Senator's own experience and advocacy around Down's syndrome. It was a good example of how we were able to take an issue,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I thank the Chair and this committee for its work. It is a very valuable addition to the work of the Oireachtas. From my own perspective and that of my Department we do not see this as a once-off engagement. We will publish the national access plan. That is a higher education document but we will be publishing it shortly. I imagine the committee will want to be kept informed on that and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: The Senator is right about funding for staff and student training around awareness. The committee identified it as an area that needs real acceleration. From September, under the funding I referred to earlier, PATH 4, every college in Ireland will get an allocation for universal design. It is up to them what they do with it because they are autonomous. There is a list of things they can...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Education and the UNCRPD: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: Yes.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Language Schools (13 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: The Interim List of Eligible Programmes (ILEP) was introduced as part of a series of reforms to the student immigration system for international education in line with the Government decision of 19 May 2015. These reforms have been designed to - tackle abuse of the immigration regime, - tackle abuse of the labour market, - improve the overall quality of offering to international students, -...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Fees (13 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: As the Deputy may be aware I have already made improvements to the non-adjacent distance criteria in Budget 2022 for the 2022/23 academic year, reducing the criteria from 45km to 30km to support students who must travel long-distances to their place of education. The table below sets out the estimated number of students that would be affected by changing the SUSI distance criteria from 30km...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (13 Jul 2022)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 416 and 433 together. The information sought by the Deputy, in regard to the National Training Fund levy in PQ 38641/22 and PQ 38460/22, is being collated with assistance from colleagues of the Department of Social Protection. This Department will supply the information to the Deputy as soon as possible.