Results 10,801-10,820 of 45,510 for speaker:Simon Harris

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Student Support Schemes (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The determining date will be 1 October 2019 but if it is necessary for me to provide further clarity or assistance on that, I will be happy to do so. Deputy O'Connor makes a valid point. Through this example and other correspondence he has sent me, he highlights the need to overhaul the entire student support scheme. He has asked me to stand over the logic of the system. I can read out...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Technological Universities (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: Absolutely. It is key to the success of this project that there be a Wexford campus. That has always been the intention and it needs to happen. The consortium recently designed a change management programme and established a project office with three full-time executives and support staff. That office has been working on making progress and updating the draft application which is now...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Technological Universities (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: In light of the week that is in it, I am very pleased that Deputy Murphy has told of her experience of the benefits of further education because it can be transformational. There are many pathways to get to where people wish to go. I have heard many stories this week of persons who missed out on a place in university that they desperately wanted. They were disappointed at the time, but did...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The Deputy is correct that there has been an effort by some Deputies - not him or me - to pit one generation against another with regard to Covid. The reality is that it has had a serious impact on all generations, including young people. I was very moved by the "Prime Time" television programme broadcast last night which showed all the milestones young people have missed as a result of the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Costs (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The appeals process and the standardisation is a matter for the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Foley, and I will pass on details of the issue raised by the Deputy regarding that family in Tipperary to her. My understanding is that the appeals process opens on Monday but in addition to that, the marks that teachers gave to students will also be provided to all students from next...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Services (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Pringle for raising this important matter, which he also raised with me last week during a debate on these matters. This is a very serious issue and as the Deputy is aware, I have allocated an additional €5 million for mental health supports. Admittedly, €2 million of that was a budget day announcement of additional funding and then a further €3 million...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Services (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: It is objectively one of the largest increases we have seen for student mental health services in many years but whether it is enough is always a fair question. Do I want to continue to invest more? Of course I do. The Deputy asked what will happen with the funding and what the institutions will do with it and that is a key question. I have outlined in my answer what we want them to do...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Services (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I assure the Deputy that we will do that. I am more than happy to keep the Deputy and the House updated in that regard.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Technological Universities (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Verona Murphy for asking this question which she has asked of me many times in the last eight weeks. I know it is a priority for her and for all Oireachtas Members from the south east because it is potentially a transformational project in the context of regional development and access to higher education. I assure the Deputy that it is a priority for me as well. Indeed, the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Admissions (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I acknowledge the Deputy's and Deputy Ó Laoghaire's constructive engagement on this issue. I have looked at all the options because this year calls for us to look at absolutely everything we can possibly do. The clear advice available to me, and I am happy to write to the Deputy on this, is that the ring-fencing of places is legally fraught for a variety of reasons, principally on the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Admissions (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I agree with much of what the Deputy said. Let us hope a year like this year never happens again. It has been an extraordinary year that nobody could predict. I welcome what the Deputy said. There has been an effort by some, not the Deputy, perhaps to pit one year group against the other. Every student and year group has experienced a difficult impact as a result of the pandemic. The...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Costs (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for this important question. The short answer is that I will. I have already spoken to the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, about this. He was planning a meeting with the Union of Students in Ireland, USI. That either has taken place or will take place shortly. The union has a number of proposals that it wants the Minister to consider and he wants to engage with USI...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Costs (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I welcome the Deputy's kind words for the staff of SUSI. I met them last week and it is incredible that almost all of them have to work remotely to keep everybody safe and follow public health guidance. They are still managing to process a serious amount of applications so I join the Deputy in thanking them. I asked for a note from the Department of Housing, Planning and Local...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Fees (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I very much welcome the survey done by the Deputy and it is important to directly hear the voices of students. In 2015, the State was investing approximately €1.4 billion of Exchequer funds in higher education and that has now risen to €1.8 billion. When we add the SUSI costs, the figure rises to above €2 billion. We need to do more and the programme for Government...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Higher Education Institutions (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I was delighted to see this question as I had an exciting meeting the other day with representatives of HEAnet, the organisation that is involved in rolling out technological solutions for students. The Deputy knows that eduroam is a Wi-Fi system used not just by students on campus in Ireland but around the world. HEAnet is in the process of developing proposals to see how this eduroam...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Higher Education Institutions (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I suggest we engage on this matter if the Deputy wishes to send me some proposals in this regard. We fund the HEA through the innovation and transformation fund and I have a long list of projects I could read out that it is already funding. The Deputy has identified a real need, particularly in some of the more rural parts of the country. HEAnet is funded through the HEA and it is...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Higher Education Institutions (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: The Deputy has honestly highlighted what is a very delicate balance. Deputies in the House are quite rightly calling on me to ensure we provide extra college places and it is perfectly appropriate. At the same time, we must meet the needs of existing students, and all in a world of Covid-19, where health and safety must come first. As I stated, I expect all students to receive details of...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Admissions (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 22 and 51 together. I was very grateful to Deputy Conway-Walsh for wanting to transfer questions in order to highlight this matter as I know the issue is important and timely. This year has been one like no other, and it was a year when a leaving certificate class could not do a leaving certificate exam. At every twist and turn, everybody in this House...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Fees (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for the question. One of the few jurisdictions that has higher fees is Northern Ireland. I presume the same logic would apply in terms of the Deputy wanting to see a reduction in fees in Northern Ireland where Sinn Féin is in government and where the fees are £4,395 sterling per annum and students, therefore, are leaving colleges in Northern Ireland heavily...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Third Level Fees (9 Sep 2020)

Simon Harris: I agree with the Deputy. Opportunities that are often available to students will not be available in the current college year, the most obvious being employment opportunities. Many students work part time to supplement the cost of living and the cost of going to college. For this reason, we decided to make a targeted intervention this year in doubling the student assistance fund. This...