Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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1077. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills , further to Parliamentary Question No. 592 of 11 May, the anticipated year of completion or inclusion within the overall block grant allocation of all items currently funded from the top-slice allocation, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31823/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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My Department allocates recurrent funding to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) for direct disbursement to HEA designated higher education institutions.

Ring-fenced allocations for specific strategic or important purposes are earmarked as part of the grant from time to time by my Department or the HEA.

This funding is generally used to steer rapidly required systemic change, tackle issues better addressed on a collective or sector manner, or handle urgent ad-hoc requirements. It can also sometimes be allocated through competitive processes based on submission and panel evaluation.

A guiding principle of top slice funding is that a top slice should be for a finite period and subsequently be mainstreamed into the main funding model or discontinued. However each top slice requires ongoing review to determine its suitability to remain as a top slice or be mainstreamed, therefore it is not possible to provide an end date for the top slices as the position is reviewed annually.

In this regard a formal consultation process between the HEA; my Department and representative bodies of the universities (Irish Universities Association) and the technological sector (Technological Higher Education Association) takes place annually to discuss the proposed ‘top-slice’ allocations for the following year.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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1078. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills , further to Parliamentary Question No. 592 of 11 May, the difference between his Department's directed top slice and the strategic systems top slice; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31824/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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My Department allocates recurrent funding to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) for direct disbursement to HEA designated higher education institutions.

The HEA allocates this funding to the institutions via the recurrent funding model. Top sliced, ring fenced funding for specific strategic or important purposes is a component of the funding model.

Annually a top slice consultation process is undertaken between the HEA, the department and sector representatives via the sectoral Top-Slice Working Group

In this regard 'Strategic System Top Slices' are agreed between the HEA and the sector for specific sectoral strategic purposes, for example the Irish Survey of Student Engagement.

The ‘DFHERIS Directed Top-slices’ refer to top-sliced funding from the annual recurrent grant which are agreed as part of the annual budgetary process with the Department, for example the Technological University Transformation Fund.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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1079. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if higher education related expenditure from the national training fund is subsequently counted within the overall block grant allocation to the sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31831/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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My Department allocates recurrent funding to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) for direct disbursement to HEA designated higher education institutions. The HEA allocates this funding to the institutions via the recurrent funding model.

The amount provided under the National Training Fund (NTF) Enterprise Focused Higher Education provision is included in the overall recurrent grant to the sector.

The 2021 recurrent allocation is €1,182,834,000; provided from B4 General Current Grants (€1,034,482,000) and NTF Enterprise Focused Higher Education (€148,352,000).

The NTF Higher Education provisions under Springboard; Apprenticeship and Human Capital Initiative are not allocated as part of the recurrent grant to the sector.