Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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371. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service is recommending private language schools that are affiliated to Marketing English in Ireland on its student task force website to non-European students, as opposed to other private language schools, given that the affiliated language schools are no more regulated than the non-affiliated language schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16406/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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The Student Taskforce website was established to provide information to non-EEA students affected by the sudden closure of a number of English language schools in 2014. This website was established to provide a central reference point for all affected students and others requiring information on the closures. The website is not a case of promoting one group of language schools over another but was put in place to ensure that students who had been affected by the sudden closure of their school, and who were severely financially affected, did not in so far as possible suffer the same fate again. In this regard the Marketing English in Ireland (MEI) schools offer a long established and verifiable protection for learner schemes which ensures that where a member school closes, the students will be protected. Where other English language providers can offer similar such schemes then those can be considered on a case by case basis.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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372. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if it is the case that six of the English language schools to close during 2014 and 2015 were accreditation and co-ordination of English language services-approved, and three were members of Marketing English in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16407/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) operates ACELS (Accreditation and Co-ordination of English Language Services), which is a voluntary scheme that grants recognition to English language teaching organisations annually. I have been informed by QQI that of the English language schools which closed in 2014 and 2015, two held ACELS recognition at the time of closure. Two other English language schools had their ACELS recognition withdrawn prior to their closure during this period.

Regarding membership of Marketing English in Ireland (MEI), two English language schools which closed had previously held MEI membership but this was not renewed in either case by MEI for 2014. Therefore, I understand that none of the schools which closed in 2014 and 2015 was a current member of MEI at their time of closure.