Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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294. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will report on the programme for Government commitment in respect of ensuring an ambitious and implementable plan to identify and address skills gaps, ICT and STEM needs. [12051/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The Action Plan for Education was launched in September 2016 and the vision of the Plan is that Irish Education and Training across primary, secondary and third level should become the best in Europe over the next decade.

The National Skills Strategy 2025 identifies Ireland’s current skills profile, provides a strategic vision and specific objectives for Ireland’s future skills requirements, and sets out a road map for how the vision and objectives can be achieved across the education and training sector.

With over 125 Actions, the National Skills Strategy sets out the Government's commitment to improving and using skills for sustainable economic growth and outlines how we can develop a well-skilled, adaptable workforce.

One of the key elements of the Strategy was the development of a new skills architecture, including a National Skills Council and the Regional Skills Fora. This architecture will foster closer collaboration between relevant Government Departments and agencies and develop structures to strengthen engagement between the education and training system and enterprise.

The Council will oversee research, advise on prioritisation of identified skills needs and on how to secure delivery of identified needs and will have a key role in promoting and reporting on the delivery of responses by education and training providers to those priorities.

I have appointed the members of the Council who are drawn from senior levels in the public and private sector. It will be an advisory, non-statutory body under the remit of the Department of Education and Skills.

The Council will oversee research from a number of sources including, the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs the Skills and Labour Market Research Unit in SOLAS and the Regional Skills Fora.

The launch of the Council will take place over the coming weeks and the first meeting will take place shortly afterwards.

Both my Department's Action Plan for Education for 2016-2019 and the National Skills Strategy 2025 contain clear commitments to supporting and developing STEM and ICT education.

Among the specific actions undertaken to date in this area are:

- On 27^thFebruary a new competitive call to Higher Education providers for course proposals to be funded under Springboard+ 2017 was launched.

- On 20^thMarch additional funding of €2.25 million was announced to boost ICT Skills development with additional summer camps for second level students being developed, as well as up to 700 additional places on ICT courses.

- The STEM Education Review Group published their report in November 2016 which presents a detailed examination of the provision of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education in Ireland. It focussed on schools and on the necessary capacity building required to achieve a step-change in outcomes for learners that will benefit our society and the economy. The review outlines 47 actions. 21 of these actions have been identified for initial priority implementation, and have been incorporated within the Action Plan for Education. These include: (a) All STEM teaching should be delivered by qualified STEM teachers (b)Introduce computer science, including coding, as a Leaving Certificate subject. Following the STEM Education Review Group's report work has commenced on the development of a STEM Education Policy Statement.

- We have established an Implementation Advisory Group for the Digital Strategy for Schools 2015-2020. This Group comprises representation from the Department, industry, academic experts, practitioners/teachers and representatives from the tech voluntary sector.

- In January, I  announced an  investment of €30 m in ICT infrastructure grants for primary and post-primary schools. The investment marks the start of the implementation of the government’s €210 Million Digital Strategy for Schools. The funding will support the development and implementation of an eLearning Plan for each school to embed ICT in teaching and learning.

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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295. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to outline his plans to address the crisis in the tourism and hospitality industry in respect of the supply and training of chefs and kitchen staff in view of the negative impact this is currently having on enterprises and tourism; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14416/17]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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In 2015 the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGSFN) carried out a study on the future skills needs of the hospitality sector. The objective was to assess demand arising within the sector in Ireland including hotels, restaurants, bars, canteens and catering over the period to 2020. The aim was to ensure that there will be the right supply of skills to help drive domestic hospitality sector business and employment growth. The report which was published in November 2015, provides a clear and coherent framework for the development of talent in the hospitality sector in the years ahead to help drive both hospitality business and employment growth which is one the key goals of the Government’s Tourism Policy Statement – People, Place and Policy-Growing Tourism to 2025.

The Study assesses skills demand at all NFQ levels, with a particular focus on career progression opportunities for those at lower skilled levels to help fill anticipated job openings. The report provides a set of recommendations designed to address the skills requirements of the sector over the period to 2020. A key recommendation in the report was the need to set up a National Oversight and Advisory Group comprising all of the key hospitality stakeholders.

Following on this recommendation, the Hospitality Skills Oversight Group was established early last year. Chaired by SOLAS for the first year, it has held eight meetings so far. Membership of the Group includes the Restaurant Association of Ireland, the Irish Hotel Federation, Irish Hospitality Institute, Licensed Vintners Association, Vintners Federation of Ireland, Fáilte Ireland, Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Department of Education and Skills, Department of Social Protection, Higher Education Authority, Skillnets, SOLAS, ETBs, IoTs, DIT and Quality and Qualifications Ireland. The role of the Group is to monitor progress on the implementation of the recommendations of the EGFSN and to provide a forum for on-going collaboration in addressing the skills needs of the sector and to identify and progress actions to overcome barriers on its implementation.

The Group will publish a progress report later this year. To date work has been undertaken on careers promotion via a range of fora, the launch of the Tourism Insight online programme - aimed at promoting careers in tourism and hospitality with particular reference to transition year and Youthreach participants. The NCCA has recently published a draft new specification for Junior Certificate Home Economics which has a strong emphasis on culinary skills and retains the cookery examination component. Members of the group participated in a dedicated focus group with the NCCA on the new specification. Audits of both higher and further education facilities and courses are underway. A Restaurant and Hospitality Skillnet has been established which aims to address key skills requirements of restaurants and catering companies to help drive the domestic hospitality sector, employment growth, talent attraction and retention. Funded through the National Training Fund by my Department, the network plans to design tailored programmes covering all aspects of the restaurant, food and beverage industry to SMEs nationally with a particular focus on career progression for those at lower skilled levels to help fill anticipated job openings and increase retention levels within the sector and is well placed to address key recommendations of the EGFSN 2015 Report.

Earlier this year, I launched the Action Plan to expand Apprenticeship and Traineeship in Ireland 2016-2020, setting out how state agencies, education and training providers and employers will work together to deliver on the Programme for Government commitments on the expansion of apprenticeship and traineeship in the period to 2020. The Plan sets out how we will manage the pipeline of new apprenticeships already established through the first call for proposals in 2015 and also commits to a new call for apprenticeship proposals later this year, to provide for the needs of all sectors, including hospitality and tourism. Over the lifetime of the Action Plan, 50,000 people will be registered on apprenticeship and traineeship programmes representing a doubling of current activity. Work is progressing on the development of a new Commis Chef Apprenticeship led by the Irish Hotels Federation and the Restaurants Association of Ireland working with Kerry Education and Training Board. It is planned that this programme will commence later this year. The Apprenticeship Council also recently approved development funding for a separate proposal to develop a Chef de Partie Apprenticeship. The Apprenticeship Council will continue to work with the proposers of these new programmes to develop them into sustainable apprenticeships that can be delivered on a nationwide basis. The funding for planned and forecast expansion in 2017 will see an additional €20 million provided.

In 2015 a new Career Traineeship initiative was initiated by SOLAS in collaboration with the ETBs and enterprise to develop a more effective model of work-based learning, primarily at NFQ levels 4 and 5, incorporating best national and international research and practice. Networks have been created to facilitate partnerships between ETBs and employers to identify training needs, design training programmes, recruit learners and deliver training on and off the job. The Career Traineeship model of work-based learning is currently being piloted with the hospitality and engineering sectors, with the involvement of seven ETBs.

Last year, over 8,000 higher education students undertook courses in this sector and provision was planned for over 6,700 beneficiaries within the further education and training sector.

The work of the EGFSN and the Skills and Labour Market Research Unit in SOLAS, particularly in the provision of forecasts for existing and future skills needs across various sectors including hospitality, will continue to support and inform the work of my Department on the overall implementation of the National Skills Strategy 2025 and the Action Plan for Education 2016-2019 to ensure we plan and provide for Ireland's skills requirements across all sectors.