Results 201-220 of 33,686 for in 'Written Answers' speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (18 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 350, 351, 353 and 357 together. The tertiary education system plays a central role in ensuring that our graduates from higher education, further education and training and from apprenticeship are equipped with the essential skills, vocational, professional and transversal skills and competencies that will equip them for success in work. These skills enhance...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (18 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: My officials are actively engaging with the Department of Health, the HSE and other relevant Health and Social Care Profession stakeholders to ensure that we can continue to deliver graduates with the skills necessary to support our healthcare system and support the strategic workforce planning by the health sector. The availability of appropriate placements and placement supports is a...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Bullying in Educational Institutions (18 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: The Deputy will be aware that there are a number of Programme for Government (PfG) commitments aimed at addressing bullying, including a commitment to commission surveys of staff and students in the areas of harassment, sexual harassment, and bullying in higher education. These surveys have now taken place and the findings published. Our higher education institutions have a duty of to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (18 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: Following on from improvements made to the Student Grant Scheme in Budget 2023, a range of further measures were announced as part of Budget 2024 to enhance the scheme and other supports. I am investing €31 million for improvements in Student Supports which will see students benefit from an increase in maintenance rates, the restoration of maintenance for eligible postgraduate students...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1813 and 1814 together. My officials are reviewing the issues raised with Donegal ETB and a response will issue to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Capital Expenditure Programme (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: The new engineering block at South East Technological University (SETU) Waterford Campus is a high priority project for my Department. It is one of five projects in the Higher Education PPP Bundle 2 project, two of which are for SETU; one at the Waterford campus and one at the Carlow campus. The SETU Waterford project is the largest in the Higher Education PPP Programme and will be...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: I would like to thank the Deputy for his question. Currently, 58 of the 73 statutory apprenticeship programmes have no qualifying criteria associated in regards to colour blindness. More generally, to support apprentices, information is sought at the point of registration on any additional supports that may be needed. Education and training providers offer learning and other supports to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Period Poverty (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1817, 1818 and 1819 together. As the Deputy is aware, matters relating to schools do not fall within my remit but that of my colleague Minister Foley. Regarding Education and Training Boards (ETBs), last year, a pilot called ‘Worryfree’ was rolled across further education and training colleges across six ETBs - see table below. The pilot...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: The National Access Plan has called for more flexible forms of learning for target groups and those who are socio-economically disadvantaged. One of the priorities for Budget 2024 is reducing child poverty. We know that Education has the power to transform lives, lift people out of poverty and break down cycles of intergenerational poverty. I have been consistent in my position that we...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Grant Payments (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: Improvements to the student grant scheme has been a key priority since becoming Minister, and I have already made a number of significant improvements to the Student Grant Scheme over past Budgets benefiting thousands of students. I have already started the process of increasing certain thresholds. From September 2024:-The Band 4 maintenance grantthreshold will increase from the current...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: PhD students who are awardees on Irish Research Council awards will each receive the stipend increase of €3,000 bringing the stipend amount to €22,000 per annum, effective from 1stJanuary 2024. Awardees on the Enterprise Partnership Postgraduate Scheme and the Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship Scheme will receive the same increase.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: The Higher Education Authority (HEA) has a statutory responsibility for the effective governance and regulation of the higher education system. In support of its mandate, the HEA exercises functions in respect of allocating the moneys provided by the Oireachtas for the core activities of the higher education institutions. It allocates over one billion euro in state funds annually to the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Further and Higher Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: In 2024, all of the PhD students who currently receive a stipend under Programmes funded by the Irish Research Council (IRC) and Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) will receive the stipend increase of €3,000 per annum, bringing the stipend amount to €22,000 per annum. The provision and level of stipend provided by PhD funders outside my Department is at the discretion of each...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: I would like to thank the Deputy for her question. Currently, 58 of the 73 statutory apprenticeship programmes have no qualifying criteria associated in regards to colour blindness. More generally, to support apprentices, information is sought at the point of registration on any additional supports that may be needed. Education and training providers offer learning and other supports to...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Research and Development (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: Policies within my Department are not encompassed by the Education Sectoral meetings within the North-South Ministerial Council. This is led by my colleague, the Minister for Education. However, since the establishment of my Department in August 2020, there were two completed research projects, commissioned by the Shared Island Unit of the Department of Taoiseach, and undertaken by the...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Budget 2024 (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: Investing in further and higher education is an investment in innovation, creativity, and our future and in 2024 over €4.1 billion is being invested in these sectors. This is my Department’s fourth Budget and I’m incredibly proud of the significant progress that has been made so far in creating a sustainable and thriving future for Further and Higher Education. In 2024,...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: A significant amount of work has taken place to date, in collaboration with the Department of Health, to increase the number of places in disciplines with acute health care and medical skills shortages. There are some fundamental issues, which are in the control of the health sector, which must be solved to enable expansion. These relate to guarantees of clinical placements, detailed and...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: Ireland has an advanced system of skills provision, which is agile and responsive to skills shortages as they emerge to address evolving societal and economic needs. Through its work in apprenticeship, construction and green skills and informed by research commissioned, this Department is cognisant of the challenges presented with regard to qualified planner availability. These include issues...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: The State Examinations Commission (SEC) has responsibility for the operation, delivery and development of the State examinations. The SEC has not confirmed a date on which the Leaving Certificate 2024 results will be issued. However, it continues to work intensively to prepare for the examinations process.The date for the issue of the results for 2023 was the 25th August, which was a full...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Education (17 Jan 2024)

Simon Harris: I would like to thank the Oireachtas Joint Committee for their work on this area and I note the recommendations contained in their report.In 2022 I launched the fourth National Access Plan - A strategic action plan for equity of access, participation and success in higher education, 2022 to 2028. This plan aligns with and builds on the wider ambitions of the Programme for Government to...