Written answers

Wednesday, 28 June 2017

Department of Education and Skills

Higher Education Institutions

Photo of Mary Lou McDonaldMary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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115. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the details of his Department's 2015 review of corporate governance in all colleges. [30319/17]

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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My Department and the HEA have been working closely together in recent years to strengthen governance arrangements in the higher education sector.

A key result of this shared commitment to underpin governance arrangements in the sector is the new Governance Framework for the Higher Education System, which was agreed in 2015 following consultation with my Department, the higher education institutions and other key stakeholders.

This Framework complements the previous governance and accountability infrastructure with a series of new and improved mechanisms which will provide more robust assurance of compliance with legislative and other requirements and more timely and responsive interventions to address any issues arising.

The framework makes clear the current governance arrangements that are in place and clearly details the responsibilities of higher education institutions (HEIs) in this area, as well as the central oversight role of the HEA in monitoring governance practice across the system and the mechanisms in place to ensure good governance practice and accountability of State funding.

The HEA have also established a new programme of rolling reviews to cover specific elements of governance.  My Department agreed with the HEA that the first rolling review of governance compliance would be on procurement. This review was undertaken in 2016.

This comes on top of existing requirements, which include a requirement that all HEIs submit Annual Accounts, an Annual Governance Statement and Statement of Internal Control to the HEA and that each HEI signs a financial memorandum with the HEA each year that outlines the ongoing responsibilities of the institution in relation to financial reporting.

The Department of Education and Skills and the HEA are considering whether any additional measures may be necessary to further strengthen governance in the future. 

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