Seán Kyne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach's office for choosing this Commencement debate. I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. As the Minister of State is aware, the education and training boards, ETBs, came into being in 2013 and will celebrate ten years in existence on 1 July 2023. They follow on from the vocational educational committees, VECs. In total they have about 32,000 staff throughout the country, with a spend in excess of €2 billion. I take this opportunity to congratulate a colleague in County Galway, Councillor Michael "Moegie" Maher, on becoming president of the Education and Training Boards Ireland, ETBI, recently. He will be in that position for the next two years. The ETBs are a major provider of educational services at second and third level. In County Galway there is a huge array of colleges, including Galway Technical Institute, Galway Community College, Clarin College, Coláiste an Chreagáin and post-primary schools including Coláiste an Eachréidh, Coláiste Bhaile Chláir, Coláiste Cholmcille, Coláiste na bPiarsach, Coláiste na Coiribe, Coláiste Naomh Éinne, Coláiste Naomh Eoin, Coláiste Naomh Feichín and Merlin College in Galway city as well, and recently, a couple of community national schools. Galway-Roscommon ETB has a footprint across the city and counties of Galway and Roscommon.

Déanann Bord Oideachais agus Oiliúna na Gaillimhe agus Ros Comáin sárobair ar son an oideachais in iar-bhunscoileanna, i gcoláistí breisoideachais agus, le níos déanaí, i scoileanna náisiúnta pobail trasna an dá chontae. Tá sé ag lorg solúbthachta agus neamhspleáchais maidir le cúrsaí earcaíochta laistigh den fhoireann a bhí aige roimh an moratóir.

Flexibility and independence are things that ETBs had in the past and they wish to have again in the future for more efficient management of their affairs. A report commissioned by then Minister for Education, Michael Woods, in October 2000 by Sean Cromien suggested VECs at the time would benefit from greater independence and autonomy in that this would reduce the need for recourse to the Department on issues which would normally expect to be within the remit of the chief executive and there was considerable scope for delegation in the vocational education sector. On the requirement for the Minister for Education to approve individual teacher appointments in VECs, he said this appeared to be unnecessary.

This is a problem. For example, for small issues, if a staff member has to go out on maternity leave, the board has to get permission from the parent Department to sanction and allow that. If a staff member needs or wishes to go on a career break, equally, the board does not have that delegated authority within the ETB. It has to get permission from the Department of Education. If there is a critical illness, there is no independence or autonomy within the ETB. It has to go back to the parent department. This seems unnecessary. It is about managing the resources that are sanctioned within the ETB. There is a headline figure or a whole-time equivalent, within, for example, Galway-Roscommon ETB. It is not about seeking independence to go over that; that is a different matter. It is about managing the resources within the allocation of staffing. It is about the chief executive being able to know he or she can replace someone who goes on maternity leave or a career break or that there is a pathway to progression for somebody, that the chief executive knows that if a grade 7 staff member leaves, that person will be replaced.That is what we are asking for.