Results 161-180 of 5,871 for speaker:James Lawless

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Middle East (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Minister of State Harkin visited the Netherlands and Belgium as part of the Government's programme of St Patrick's Day travel where her engagements were focussed on further education and cultural events. As such, her itinerary did not include an appropriate occasion during which Minister Harkin would have had an opportunity to raise this issue.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Craft apprentices are employees and are paid directly by their employer during the “on-the-job” training phases of their apprenticeship. Craft apprentice gross wage norms differ for different sectors, are set through collective bargaining, and may be underpinned by sectoral employment orders. When craft apprentices attend “off-the-job” training in Education...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The student referred to by the Deputy submitted an appeal to the Independent Student Grant Appeals Board (the Board) on the 19th March 2025. This is due to be considered by the Board on or before the 19th May 2025. The determination of the Board will be communicated directly to the student.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Reply not received from Department.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Courses Accreditation (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: I propose to take Questions Nos. 842, 843 and 844 together. SOLAS delivers eCollege, the national online learning service for FET, which provides accessible and flexible free online learning opportunities for adult learners in Ireland, particularly focused on lifelong learning and upskilling in areas like ICT, business, and sustainability. The service aims to help people overcome barriers...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: My Department allocates funding to SOLAS from the Exchequer and the National Training Fund (NTF) to deliver Further Education and Training programmes and services, including eCollege. SOLAS delivers eCollege, which is the national online learning service for FET. It provides a range of courses across digital, information and communication technology (ICT) and business domains. eCollege...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: My officials have been in contact with the Deputy's parliamentary assistant seeking clarification and she will come back to us in the near future.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Universities, Technological Universities (TUs) and Institutes of Technology (IoTs) have the ability to establish or hold shares in companies under their relevant sectoral legislation. In the case of the Universities Act 1997 (as amended) and the Institutes of Technology Acts, 1992 – 2006 (as amended), Universities and IoT have the ability to establish subsidiaries without requiring...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Part V of the Disability Act 2005 requires public bodies to report on their compliance regarding the employment of persons with disabilities. My Department assumed responsibility for Part 5 reporting in 2021 and submits its reports to the National Disability Authority each year in respect of the returns for the public bodies under its aegis. In 2022 all public bodies under the aegis of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: One of the criteria in the student grant scheme relates to 'progression'. This means that a student must be moving from year to year within a course, having successfully completed the previous year or be transferring from one course to another, where the award for the subsequent course is of a higher level than the previous course. The objective of this policy is to help as many students as...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Provision (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Reply not received from Department.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The provision of Higher Education funding on an annual basis is part of overall expenditure management and budgetary policy for Government. As such, indexing does not apply. In 2025 the planned recurrent grant allocation for the sector totals €1.667 billion. This is an increase of more than €541 million, or 48%, compared to the 2019 outturn in the year prior to the formation...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Early Childhood Care and Education (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Under the Free Fees Initiative (FFI), the State provides funding toward the tuition fee costs of eligible undergraduate students who are attending approved courses. In the 2023/24 academic year, there were over 143,000 students who benefited from the FFI. Currently FFI approved courses are restricted to full-time undergraduate courses in the public higher education system and a limited...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The Deputy will be aware that Marino Institute of Education (MIE) is a private higher education institution. MIE is not in receipt of core funding from my Department. However, I understand that it receives some limited funding for approved teacher training activities from the Department of Education. MIE is an approved institution for SUSI grants purposes. It is also an approved...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Funding (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: Marino Institute of Education (MIE) is a private higher education institution. MIE is not in receipt of core funding from my Department. However, I understand that it receives some limited funding for approved teacher training activities from the Department of Education. As a private college the day to day operation of the organisation, including issues surrounding campus maintenance and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Costs (1 Apr 2025)

James Lawless: The Programme for Government commits to reducing the student contribution in a financially sustainable manner, over the lifetime of this Government. As part of the cost-of-living packages in the last three budgets, the student contribution was reduced by €1,000 on a temporary basis, at a net cost of circa €99 million per annum. These measures were in response to particular cost...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Third Level Fees (27 Mar 2025)

James Lawless: Or indeed Donogh O'Malley or many others could be referenced in this debate. My party has always prized education and put it to the fore. Education is the bridge to all that we do as an economy and subsequently as a society because it is the private enterprise, created by a successful education system, that creates the public good and the resources that we then use to support the public...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Qualifications Recognition (27 Mar 2025)

James Lawless: I thank the Deputy. On her last point about the constituent's query, if she wants to send that to my office I will happily take a look at the details of it. I will say, based on prior knowledge before I was ever a Minister in this Department, the Teaching Council has a particular set of requirements. Somebody even within the State may come a cropper - the Deputy mentioned, I think,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Qualifications Recognition (27 Mar 2025)

James Lawless: On the Deputy's Teaching Council case, I will take the details away but it is not uncommon, unfortunately, that people have different levels of accreditation or recognition within the system, notwithstanding the Teaching Council registration. I am not going to make any comment on the individual's situation. I do not know but if it is of any assistance, I have come across a case in my own...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Qualifications Recognition (27 Mar 2025)

James Lawless: For which professions?