Results 61-80 of 5,871 for speaker:James Lawless

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The main support available to students is the statutory based Student Grant Scheme. Under the terms of the Student Grant Scheme, grant assistance is awarded to students attending an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those which relate to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means. The decision on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The main support available to students is the statutory based Student Grant Scheme. Under the terms of the Student Grant Scheme, grant assistance is awarded to students attending an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those which relate to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means. The decision on...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Fees (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Higher Education Institutions are autonomous bodies responsible for their own academic affairs, including the setting of postgraduate tuition fee rates. The higher education tuition fee payable by a postgraduate student can vary depending on a variety factors, including the type of course and the fee rates of a particular institution. To abolish postgraduate fee rates would remove an...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Reform (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: I propose to take Questions Nos. 2547 to 2549, inclusive, together. The traditional university sector and the technological sector operate under separate legislation. Provisions regarding how a university may borrow by means of bank overdraft or otherwise and may guarantee or underwrite a loan taken or borrowing undertaken by any person, are set out in section 38 of the Universities...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The purpose of the new Student Accommodation Strategy is to eliminate accommodation cost and availability as barriers to accessing third-level education. One of the ways we will achieve this is by increasing the supply of accommodation through viability measures for Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA). For the first time, the State is investing in student accommodation to address...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: I propose to take Questions Nos. 2551 and 2552 together. Provisions regarding how a university may borrow by means of bank overdraft or otherwise and may guarantee or underwrite a loan taken or borrowing undertaken by any person, are set out in section 38 of the Universities Act 1997 and section 21 of the Technological Universities Act 2018. Rules regarding how a technological...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Reform (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Provisions regarding how a university may borrow by means of bank overdraft or otherwise and may guarantee or underwrite a loan taken or borrowing undertaken by any person, are set out in section 38 of the Universities Act 1997 and section 21 of the Technological Universities Act 2018. Rules regarding how a technological university may borrow are not currently in place. However, there...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: I am conscious of the cost of placements and this area is subject to commitments in the programme for Government. The issue of paid placement however is a matter for the relevant Department with responsibility for the related placements. Queries related to specific placements and financial supports should be addressed to the relevant Department in the first instance. It is my intention...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Capital Expenditure Programme (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Atlantic Technological University was formed on 01/04/2022 with the amalgamation of Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), Institute of Technology Sligo (IT Sligo), and Letterkenny Institute of Technology (LYIT) with St Angela’s College joining more recently on 01/11/2023. Funding of €2.08m was provided to support an upgrade of the roof and other building fabric at the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: I am informed by ATU that since 2020, 35 new programmes have been validated with nine programmes discontinued at ATU Mayo campus. Of the new programmes, 11 are full-time and 24 are part-time. The discontinued programmes, seven were full-time and two were part-time. A list of these programmes, including details regarding their delivery mode and course name, is broken out in the following...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The National Apprenticeship Office (NAO) has responsibility for all aspects of the management, oversight and development of the apprenticeship system in Ireland. In this capacity the NAO in conjunction with the National Apprenticeship Alliance oversees applications by industry bodies for the creation of new apprenticeships. Apprenticeships are employer-led, and employers wishing to set...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Under Section 49 of the Higher Education Act 2022 publicly funded Higher Education Institutions must provide statistics on student enrolments and graduates to the HEA in the form of an annual statistical return. The Statistics Unit of the Higher Education Authority is responsible for collecting, auditing and analysing these student data returns. Therefore the HEA has responsibility for...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The Central Applications Office (CAO), an independent registered not-for-profit company, is responsible for processing applications for undergraduate courses in Irish Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Decisions on admissions to undergraduate courses are made by the Higher Education Institutes who instruct the CAO to make offers to successful candidates based on the number of points they...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Staff (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The Comprehensive Employment Strategy for People with Disabilities for 2015 – 2024, commits the Government to progressively increasing the statutory target for the employment of people with disabilities from 3% to a minimum of 6% in the public sector by 2024. As the Deputy will be aware the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS) was...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The main form of financial assistance available to higher education students is the Student Grant Scheme which is administered by SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland). Part-Time, Online and Distance Learning Courses, do not qualify for grant assistance under the Student Grant Scheme. However, my Department does recognise the need to offer support for more flexible forms of learning...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Students with disabilities has been identified as a priority group who are under-represented in higher education and in need of additional focus under the National Access Plan (NAP). The NAP sets out the ambition for an inclusive, diverse higher education sector. A target to increase new entrants with a disability from 12.4% in 2022 to 16% by 2028 was set in the NAP. The latest figures...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Information and Communications Technology (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Almost all of my Department's computer systems can utilise the síneadh fada. The exceptions to this are listed in the table below. The current inability of these systems to utilise the síneadh fada is due to external restrictions which my Department will keep under review. Computer System Restriction Comment: Microsoft Entra ID ...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: EU Directives (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: My Department is working on two statutory instruments that will give effect to amendments to Directive 2005/36/EC. The details and current status are outlined in the table below. Directive Transposition Date Due Current Status Directive (EU) 2024/505 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 February 2024 amending Directive 2005/36/EC as...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Properties (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: My Department has not rented any properties since its establishment in 2020. All of my Department's official locations are on sites owned or operated by the OPW.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Contracts (29 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: My Department has a contract with Allpro Services for the provision of cleaning services. The value of this contract is €290,000 exclusive of VAT and is apportioned to multiple locations. It includes services provided to the Department of Education under a shared services agreement.