Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I echo the remarks expressed by Senator Moynihan. It is important that in our battle against one pandemic we do not forget the battle against another pandemic. On World AIDS Day it is important that we remember that the fight against AIDS and HIV is a domestic battle and a global battle.

The Deputy Leader will be aware that the Central Statistics Office this week published a report on the level of educational attainment in Ireland. It is a fact that 58% of 25- to 34-year-olds in Ireland have a tertiary education qualification as against an EU average of 41%, and 53% of all of those aged between 25 and 64 years have a third level education qualification. That means Ireland is the highest in the European Union in terms of the number of people who are graduates and, indeed, one of the highest in the world. It is a fantastic achievement and something that we, as a nation, should be proud of. In the past everyone said that tax was the reason that companies came to Ireland but part of the real reason is talent and Ireland is investing further in apprenticeship programmes. Educational achievement is something about which we do not shout loudly enough. Tied with all of that is the question of funding for higher education, which is an issue that I have raised on a number of occasions. The Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy Harris, is on the record as saying that 2021 is the year in which the Cassells report will be addressed. We are now in the last month of 2021 and I again ask for a debate on the question of funding for higher education.

I want to mention Úna Walsh. She is a young woman who is hearing impaired and she played the harp on the "Late Late Toy Show" last Friday night. She is from Wexford and is extraordinarily talented. I want to mention one thing and I know that the Cathaoirleach will be interested in this as well. She has actively campaigned for Irish Sign Language to become a subject at second level. Yesterday, we had a Commencement debate on the issue of the Irish Sign Language Act. It would be good, in the context of second level curricular reform, that we consider the idea of introducing Irish Sign Language as a second level subject.