Results 10,501-10,520 of 45,510 for speaker:Simon Harris

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Bullying in Educational Institutions (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I do not have that comprehensive information available to me tonight but I will get more information for the Deputy on it. I would refer to an example that is in the public domain. It is in respect of Dr. Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin who I have met on two occasions and am in contact with. The way she was treated was absolutely disgraceful. To get to the core of the Deputy's...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Assistance Fund (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I will commit on the record to come back to Deputy Pringle on the figure of how many students from Northern Ireland are studying in the Republic. My own instinct is that it will be much higher than that. I wonder is it a designation issue or how people self-designate but I will ask the Higher Education Authority, HEA, and will revert to the Deputy.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Asylum Seekers (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: My answer will be much the same as the one I gave to Deputy Barry because the question is very similar and important. I say on the record of the House that it is not right and I am clear on that. What am I doing about it? The first thing we did was to make amendments in August to the student support scheme which was welcomed by the Irish Refugee Council. I do not see this as the end. The...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Asylum Seekers (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I do not have the numbers for the specific question but I have a number that is interesting. The number of people who applied under the administrative student support scheme for asylum seekers this year is at 86, as of 12 October. That is more than have applied and have been successful in the past five years put together. Over the past five years the figure was 79, from 2015, 2016, 2017,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Student Accommodation (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: We already discussed an issue in an earlier question, and the Deputy has rightly differentiated the two issues, and have already discussed what we are doing as to on-campus accommodation. We have a clear obligation in that regard for universities to provide refunds and such flexible solutions. As to private providers, I urge all providers to be flexible in finding solutions given the...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Student Accommodation (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: The Deputy raises an interesting point on the CRSS. This is well outside the remit of my Department but I will raise it with my colleague, the Minister for Finance, and will revert to the Deputy on this issue. My understanding is that businesses which cannot continue to operate or operate at restrictive levels can avail of this support. It is a fair point to ask if these landlords fit into...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Technological Universities (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Lowry. I agree with him that a massive amount of work has been undertaken. I think more than 20 working groups are working across 30 different work packages to try to get to this point. I want to thank the project directors and the joint chairs from AIT and LIT for what have been years of work. It is up to them, but it is to be hoped that they will arrive at a point where...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Technological Universities (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Lowry. I will undertake to keep him informed. To give him a sense of the scale of the transformation, my understanding is that under the new European universities initiatives the AIT and LIT consortium will join what is called RUN-EU which is a regional university network in the European Union. This is the way to create one of several new European universities capable of...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Assistance Fund (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Pringle for raising this matter. There are two issues. I took the words "student assistance fund" from the question. In regard to the student assistance fund of €16 million, which is available in all colleges across the Republic of Ireland, I can confirm that students from Northern Ireland are eligible to apply for support under that scheme. The Deputy is familiar...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Student Assistance Fund (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I am delighted the Deputy asked me about that. I would be very pleased to meet him and other Deputies from Border counties, including Donegal. I have had a couple of really interesting meetings in recent days regarding North-South co-operation. I met the President of Queens University in his capacity as the president of Universities Ireland, which represents all the universities on the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Fees (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: It is important to note in relation to this issue that under the Free Fees Schemes the Exchequer currently makes a very substantial contribution amounting to €340m to meeting the tuition fee costs of eligible undergraduate Higher Education students with those students who are required to pay the student contribution paying €3,000 per annum towards the cost of their studies. ...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Universal Support Ireland (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: The purpose of the Student Grant Scheme is to provide additional assistance where parental income is below a certain threshold, or in the case of independent mature students, where the level of income of the student and his or her spouse warrants additional assistance by way of a grant. For student grant purposes, students are categorised according to their circumstances either as...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I appreciate that this is a year unlike any other for students, and that the accommodation needs of students have been significantly altered by the impact of Covid-19 on higher education. My Department, in consultation with these key stakeholders will continue to monitor the situation relating to student accommodation closely. I understand, based on the information available to me, that a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: My Department is closely monitoring any potential impact that the results of Leaving Certificate 2020 may have on entry to further and higher education in 2021. This year more students than ever before were offered a place in higher education, with 52% of these students being offered their first preference Level 8 course in Round One. As of the end of Round Two, more than 49,000 students...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I have made clear from day one that access and inclusion are at the core of my vision for my new Department. My Department will spend well over €400 million on student supports in 2020 including the SUSI scheme. As part of Budget 2021, I have secured an additional €20 million to provide for additional applicants, €6 million to expand supports to postgraduate...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Institutions (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: As the Deputy will be aware the Government has provided substantial additional funding in the amount of €168m to ensure third level institutions are resourced to respond to the challenges of operating effectively in the current environment. For the education providers under the remit of my Department, the allocation includes funding towards immediate ICT costs relating to the move to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Grant Scheme (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: There are two important points to make about the treatment of the Family Income Supplement, also known as the Working Family Payment, under the SUSI scheme. First, the supplement is treated as an income disregard and is therefore not included in the calculation of reckonable income. Second, and unlike other social protection payments which are paid to individuals, the Working Family...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Budget 2021 (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I think it is important to note the range of additional supports which have been put in place for students as part of Budget 2021 and as part of the Government's Covid response earlier this year. - I have doubled the level of funding available in the Student Assistance Fund for this academic year; - I have increased the level of funding for the 1916 Bursary Fund (also known as PATH 2) to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Technological Universities (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: The development and progression of technological universities is an established policy objective of Government in the context of overarching national strategy on higher education landscape restructuring and this is underscored in the commitment in the current Programme for Government. Under the statutory framework provided in the Technological Universities Act 2018, two or more IoTs may...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Student Accommodation (20 Oct 2020)

Simon Harris: I am conscious of the challenges faced by students regarding student accommodation this year due to financial pressures and the blended learning format of the 2020/21 academic year. Responding to these issues is a significant matter of concern for myself and for my colleague the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage and we are examining how accommodation providers can be...