Results 1-20 of 7,048 for speaker:James Lawless

Science Week: Statements (13 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: I am delighted to be here to open this debate to mark Science Week 2025. As Minister for science - in fact, I have a long title and science is a key part of it - it is so important we mark this event and occasion. The Irish physicist John Tyndall once observed, “Knowledge once gained casts a light beyond its own immediate boundaries.” Ireland’s future lies in its...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (13 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The Government remains committed to apprenticeships and has significantly expanded opportunities for learners in recent years, recognising the important role they play in equipping Ireland’s workforce with the skills needed to meet national priorities, including infrastructure delivery. In Budget 2026 my Department secured an additional €79 million investment in...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (13 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The leaking of exam papers is completely unacceptable and it is a matter that I am taking very seriously. I have met with the CEOs of SOLAS and QQI as well as the Board of SOLAS on this matter. I have sought advice from the Attorney General, and asked SOLAS and QQI to consider if, given the information in their possession, the matter of leaked exam papers should be referred to An...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Policies (13 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: Reply not received from the Department.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Research and Development (13 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: My Department oversees the implementation of Impact 2030, Ireland's national research and innovation strategy, which emphasises the vital role that people and their skills play in sustaining and advancing Ireland’s research and innovation ecosystem. Pursuant to this, my Department has also developed and published Global Citizens 2030, Ireland’s Talent and Innovation...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Properties (13 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: I refer the Deputy to my previous responses to questions No. 2727 on 8 September and No. 2569 on 29 April which are all on the Dáil record. My Department does not have any vacant or derelict properties, lands and buildings under its ownership or control within County Mayo. All of my Department's office locations are on sites or in buildings owned and/or operated by the OPW, in St....

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Data (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: My Department does not have access to statistics on emigration. The Higher Education Authority (HEA) runs an annual Graduate Outcomes Survey which looks at the main activity of graduates (i.e. Employment, Further Study, Seeking Employment or Other) nine months after graduation. While graduates in employment are asked about the location of their employment, this is not the same as...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Staff (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The table below outlines the number of qualified accounts employed in my Department by grade for each year. Grade 2023 2024 2025 (End of October Accountant Grade 4 5 5

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The student referred to by the Deputy submitted the outstanding document to Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) and was issued a letter on 3rd November 2025 advising of an improved grant rate of Part Non-Adjacent Standard Band 4 Rate of Maintenance Grant, together with 100% Student Contribution/Tuition Fees, whichever applies. Students experiencing exceptional financial need may be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: My Department recognises the importance of promoting and expanding the teaching and use of Irish at third level, including to meet workforce needs across various sectors. The Higher Education Authority Act (2022) places a statutory obligation on the HEA to support higher education institutions (HEIs) to teach, promote and use the Irish language. HEIs are autonomous and determine...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1130 and 1131 together. Higher Education Institutions are autonomous institutions responsible for their own academic affairs including the development of relevant curriculum and student numbers on individual courses. Institutions receive funding from a variety of sources, including state grants, competitive funding, tuition fees, and commercial/private...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Teacher Training (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: Higher Education Institutions are autonomous institutions responsible for their own academic affairs including the development of relevant curriculum and student numbers on individual courses. Institutions receive funding from a variety of sources, including state grants, competitive funding, tuition fees, and commercial/private income streams. Their various income streams contribute to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: An official from my Department has advised that a checklist letter was sent to the student referred to by the Deputy on 25 July 2025, requesting evidence of independent residence that covers 2024 (no later than October) and 2025 (no later than the date of entry to their current course). As listed in the same checklist letter the following documents are accepted by SUSI as evidence of living...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The objective of the statutory based student grant scheme is to provide additional assistance where household income is below a certain threshold. For student grants purposes, students are categorised according to their circumstances either as students dependent on parents/legal guardian or as independent mature students. A candidate's reckonable income for the purposes of the student...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The Deputy will be aware that Ireland's universities are autonomous institutions. As such, the management of their day-to-day functions, including opportunities to diversify their income streams, are matters for each individual institution. In relation to sources of funding, the position is that income sources can include state grants, research grants and contracts, EU funding, investment...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: MTU Kerry have a proposal progressing under the Technological Sector Strategic Projects Fund (TSSPF) programme at their Tralee campus. This proiect, along with their project under PPP Bundle 1, which I officially opened last week will facilitate the TU vacating their South Campus buildings. These buildings will in time transfer to Kerry ETB which will facilitate the consolidation and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: Apprentices are employees and are registered by their employers in the Education and Training Board (ETB) region in which the employer is located, not on a county basis or area of that county. This means the apprentice may not necessarily reside in or be originally from that region. In the case of employers based in Dublin north-west, the apprentices they employ are registered to City of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Admissions (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1139, 1140 and 1141 together. The most recent data available is for the academic year 2024/2025 and is sourced from the HEA. Detailed enrolment data on HEA-funded higher education institutions is available on the HEA's website. The total number of students enrolled at Dublin City University is 19,890 for 2024/2025. This continues an upward trend of...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education Policy (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: My department recognises the importance of promoting and expanding the teaching and use of Irish at third level. I have instructed my officials to undertake a programme of work aligned with the objectives of the National Plan for Irish Language Public Services. This includes working with colleagues in relevant Government departments to establish a working group with representatives from...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Functions (12 Nov 2025)

James Lawless: The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is committed to ensuring that its policies and actions are informed by sound evidence, analysis, and long-term strategic planning. All policy units in my Department contribute to a forward-looking approach through their ongoing engagement with stakeholders, data analysis, and robust policy formation...