Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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131. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the €40 million to address sustainable funding for higher education as outlined in the Budget 2023 Expenditure Report is a first or full-year costing; if it is a first-year costing, and the estimated full-year costing; if this is fully separate from €37 million allocated for central pay agreement provision; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50480/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Estimates for Public Services 2023 were published as part of the Budget 2023 Expenditure report.The Higher Education allocation for 2023 includes an increase of Higher Education Funding in the amount of, €40 million, to address the sustainable funding of Higher Education as laid out in Funding the Future, including

- Improved staffing and capacity building in Universities/Specialist Colleges (€18m)

- Improved staffing and strengthening Structural capacity of Technological Universities (€18m)

- FET and HE co-developed and co-delivered programmes (€2m)

- Increased funding for existing medicine places to protect quality and enhance sustainability of the system (€2.4m)

This €40m allocation is a full year cost and an increase in the level of baseline funding from the 2022 estimates. This investment is the first significant step in addressing core underfunding of the higher education system in a strategic and reformative way. By providing capacity building for key roles we are resourcing the sector to adapt and respond to key strategic reform measures. This progress has been expertly aided by the work of the Funding the Future Implementation Group which is co-chaired by the Minister and Professors Anne Looney and Tom Collins, which will now continue its remit to develop reform recommendations to inform the implementation of these measures and development of future budgetary considerations.

In addition the work of Funding the Future and a recent Spending Review realised a 25% increase level of demographic funding per additional student for the 2022/23 academic year. Through Budget 2023 we also secured additional funding of €32.2m to build capacity for up to an additional 4,125 students.

Funding of 37m for Central Pay Agreement Provision (Existing Building Momentum Deal) is a separate allocation towards the referenced costs across my Department's expenditure programmes. Full details on the allocation of resources across spending areas will be detailed in the annual Revised Estimates Volume for the Public Service (REV).

Furthermore, as part of the cost of living measures in Budget 2023, we also introduced a once off allocation of €10million to assist with rising operational costs faced by our FET and HE providers in 2022.

This significant allocation of public resources is a clear demonstration of the Government's commitment to meeting the funding needs of the higher education sector in order to more fully realise its potential in contributing to economic and societal priorities which are central to this country's long-term sustainability.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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132. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the way that the €40 million allocated under non-core additional Covid-19 will be spent; if the €40 million is a first or full-year costing; the value in full-year costings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50481/22]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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The €40 million allocated is a full year costing and includes €30m to increase capacity for apprenticeship in 2023, including addressing the backlog on apprenticeship exacerbated by the pandemic. It will provide for an additional estimated 4,000 additional places on craft apprenticeship training and 500 additional places on consortia—led programmes; as well as for the payment of allowances to all craft apprentices while on off-the-job training phases, including the additional 4,000 apprentices.

€3m will provide over 2,000 Skillnet Ireland places to provide upskilling opportunities in emerging technologies and expansion of programmes to include sustainable finance, green technology and responding to climate change.

€4m, comprising €2m each to support the continued implementation of the FET Strategy and Adult Literacy for Life Strategy in the Further Education and Training system.

The final €3m is for Mental Health and Well-being supports under the National Student Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Framework, through a Covid allocation for the 2023/2024 academic year.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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133. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the way that the €21 million allocated under non-core additional National Recovery and Resilience Plan allocation will be spent; if the €21 million is a first or full-year costing; the value in full-year costings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50482/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Estimates for Public Services 2023 were published as part of the Budget 2023 Expenditure report.

The Higher Education allocation for 2023 includes an allocation of €21million towards Technological University development under the National Recovery & Resilience Plan Allocation (NRRP). The 2023 allocation is the year 2 allocation under the NRRP Priority Component 3: Social and Economic Recovery and Job Creation:

www.gov.ie/en/publication/d4939-national-recovery-and-resilience-plan-2021/.

Page 27 of the NRRP details the project in question, project 3.3. TU Education and Training Reforms. In April 2022 grants agreements were signed between the HEA and the technological sector including all 5 TUs and the Dundalk and Dun Laoghaire Institutes of Technology. The 2022 costs of the project are projected at €19 million, and the 2023 costs are projected at €21 million.

Full details on the allocation of resources across spending areas will be detailed in the annual Revised Estimates Volume for the Public Service (REV).

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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134. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the way that the €21 million allocated under non-core additional Brexit Adjustment Reserve allocation will be spent; if the €21 million is a first or full-year costing; the value in full-year costings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50483/22]

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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The €21 million allocation for my Department for 2023 under the Brexit Adjustment Reserve allocation is a full year cost and is split as across a number of initiatives as follows:

- €11m for Skillnet Ireland to support SMEs through its Skillnet Business Networks to help SMEs plan for success in key areas focused on supporting business recovery and growth post-Brexit. The funding will support 7,400 training places across several priority areas;

- €1.5m for Skillnet Ireland to provide 1,000 training places to support the digital transformation and sustainability journey of larger Irish companies and protect employment levels within firms willing to support capacity-building of SMEs within their supply chain and those impacted by Brexit;

- €3m for Skillnet Ireland's Skills Connectemployment activation programme, to provide 3,000 reskilling opportunities for the unemployed, returners and other impacted groups for industries facing labour shortages;

- €3.5m to increase the number of Irish Erasmus mobilities and

- €2.1m to fund mobilities for Northern Irish students.