Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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135. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will outline his plans to further develop further and higher education and training for the hospitality sector to entice more persons to consider the sector as a long-term career opportunity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59671/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I was delighted to visit Kerry Education and Training Board (KETB) last week to announce that they are one of ten projects approved to proceed to the next stage of proposal development around the country for capital investment under the Further Education and Training (FET) College of the Future. KETB’s proposal is to repurpose an existing factory site into a state-of-the-art campus to develop, amongst other things, a Centre of Excellence in Hospitality Training.

This development will build on the wide range of courses and programmes in Hospitality and Tourism available nationwide. Within the higher education sector, there are a range of undergraduate courses as well as 26 Springboard+ courses available in the Hospitality sector.Under Pillar 3 of the Human Capital Initiative, the Atlantic Technological University Project Higher Education 4.0 has developed the new Level 8 Hospitality Management course, in collaboration with enterprise including the Irish Hotels Federation and Fáilte Ireland, which commenced in September 2022.

There are also a wide range of courses available across the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs). For example the Hospitality Education and Training Centreunder Limerick and Clare ETB, which holds a European Framework for Quality Management Centre of Excellence Award,is dedicated to providing the highest level of culinary and hospitality training.

There are currently 3 apprenticeships for chefs; Commis Chef (level 6), Chef de Partie (level 7) and Sous Chef (level 8). An Executive Chef two year programme at level 9 is in development and it is expected that the head chef apprenticeship will be launched by end of Q1 2023. Work is also underway to enhance the progression route from the Commis Chef apprenticeship into the Chef de Partie apprenticeship.

There are also a range of opportunites available for upskilling employees in the sector through the specific networks supported by Skillnet Ireland, including the Irish Hotels Federation Skillnet; the Restaurant & Hospitality Skillnet; the Rural Food Skillnet and the Leisure, Health and Fitness Skillnet. These networks work collaboratively to share best practice and to respond effectively to the specific skills needs of the sector. They offer flexible training programmes tailored to the needs of the sector.

The SOLAS Skills to Advance Initiative has also responded to a request from the Irish Hotels Federation to boost the retention and career progression of key talent in the hospitality and tourism sector. Two dedicated programmes have been developed by SOLAS and the ETBs in consultation with the Irish Hotels Federation, Fáilte Ireland and the Regional Skills Fora, with over 800 employees having participated to date.

My Department is committed to working collaboratively with the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media on co-ordinated policies and approaches to support education and training opportunities for the tourism and hospitality sector based on the skills needs identified for the sector. My Department is also represented on the Fáilte Ireland Careers Oversight Group, which works on a collaborative basis to support sustainable employment in the sector.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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136. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his views on the development of Cavan Institute as a hub for further education and training. [59580/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Cavan and Monaghan Education and Training Board (CMETB) submitted an application under the FET College of the Future Major Projects Fund, to build new, centralised accommodation for Cavan Institute. It was agreed that this application, which was previously part of the Department of Education school building programme, would be advanced through this new FET capital funding programme.

Announcements of the outcomes of the strategic assessment stage of COTF is on-going. A number of proposals, 10 in total, will move to the next stage of proposal development which will require the development of a detailed Preliminary Business Case. Each ETB is being contacted individually and the remaining ETBs will be advised of the outcome of their applications under COTF in the coming weeks.

CMETB also submitted a proposal under the Strategic Infrastructure Upgrade Fund (SIUF), for the renovation and upgrade of the old ammunition storage facility of the former Dún Uí Neill army barracks. The proposal remains under consideration and will be the subject of further engagement between SOLAS and CMETB. The Strategic Infrastructure Upgrade Fund (SIUF), supports smaller-scale investments in existing FET infrastructure.

Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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137. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason that he has not instructed third level colleges to facilitate more online tutors which would eliminate a certain amount of students requiring accommodation in areas where housing is scarce and not available to rent or where rents are high given the housing crisis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59849/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are autonomous institutions within the meaning of the Universities Act 1997, the Technological Universities Act 2018 and the Institutes of Technology Acts 1992 to 2006. Under this legislation the institutions are academically independent and are entitled to regulate their own academic affairs and administrative processes, including the mode of delivery of programmes of study. HEIs have taken significant steps to ensure that teaching and learning is enhanced by the integrated use of digital technologies, both on-campus and remotely.Many HEIs are and will be developing new blended learning programmes for validation. Such programmes need to be designed, delivered and assessed within an approved quality assurance framework developed by HEIs with reference to the Statutory Quality Assurance Guidelines for Providers of Blended Learning Programmes. Programmes that are delivered partially or fully online, need to be developed with that mode of delivery in mind rather than merely being translated or transferred from the original face-to-face programme model.

In 2021, key stakeholders from across the higher education sector worked collaboratively to reflect on the sudden move to online/remote learning in higher education, gather related evidence and to agree a way forward post-pandemic. Partners included the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, QQI, USI, representative bodies of HEIs, and others. The resulting report, ‘Next Steps for Teaching and Learning: Moving Forward Together’ was launched in November 2021. The report includes recommendations for the sector with regard to blended/remote teaching and learning and the use of technology to ensure that higher education is as flexible, resilient and equitable as possible for all who learn, all who teach, all who support and lead, and our wider communities.

In June 2022, the HEA announced €37.62m in funding for the ‘National Technological University Transformation for Recovery and Resilience' (NTUTORR) programme. The programme was informed by the Next Steps report and this funding will enable the technological sector to systematise the learnings from the experience of digitally enabled education and support the provision of digitally enhanced teaching, learning and assessment to meet the needs of staff, students, and enterprise in the regions.

The fourth National Access Plan, 2022 to 2028, which launched last month, places an emphasis on student- centred goals, including flexibility. It aims to support students to study on a flexible basis including part-time and blended learning, and identify connectivity supports for remote learning. This is a seven-year plan with an additional dedicated investment of €35 million over the course of the plan.

Regarding student accommodation I am conscious that some students are struggling to find affordable accommodation and fundamentally the challenge is one of supply of housing more generally. As a country, we know that we need to dramatically increase the supply of all types of housing and accommodation, including student accommodation. That is why the Government launched Housing for All, led by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage setting out a series of actions which will be delivered to address the housing crisis. The plan is backed by the largest housing budget in the history of the State to transform our housing system, in excess of €20 billion. Since taking up office, both my Department officials and I have engaged and continue to engage on an ongoing basis with the Minister and Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the wider higher education sector and relevant stakeholders on student accommodation issues including within the context of the advancement of the Government's Housing for All policy.

I received Government approval and support this week on outline proposals to increase the supply of student accommodation, including proposals relating to a new model whereby for the first time the State would assist directly in bridging the gap between development costs and rental affordability in relation to the provision of additional student accommodation with publicly funded higher education institutions. This will involve the State assisting with the cost of building student accommodation in return for affordability commitments on rent. In addition to policy development, Government has approved funding to support the provision of up to addition 667 beds for students attending MU, UL and UG. In addition, further engagement is ongoing with other providers including DCU and UCD who have planning permission for additional supply.I have established a dedicated Student Accommodation Unit is leading the development of this new Student Accommodation policy as a matter of urgency, alongside the HEA and the sector. This will also include support for TU’s in the development of feasibility plans on student accommodation in 2023 to develop appropriate responses to regional demand.

On rent affordability, restrictions have also been put in place to limit the amount that students can be required to pay up-front for their accommodation, ending the practice whereby students were required to pay a lump sum up-front each term. The total amount that anyone is required to pay to a landlord by way of a deposit or an advance rent payment to secure a tenancy is now no more than the equivalent of 2 months’ rent – that is one month’s rent, and one month’s deposit.

Student accommodation is subject to rent pressure zone caps and students now have recourse to the Residential Tenancies Board for dispute resolution. In addition to the extra accommodation which is being put in place this year, amounting to hundreds of beds, I am encouraging homeowners to consider renting out a room in their house for students. A homeowner can rent a room, retain their social welfare entitlements where applicable and earn up to €14,000 in rental income before having to pay tax. All higher education institutions continue to support their students to find accommodation in the private rental sector through, for example, the encouragement of room rental or ‘student digs’ in family homes and many also maintain online databases where students can search for and check out accommodation, advertisements for room rentals can be placed and advice on sample rental agreements provided. Institutions are actively promoting this option in their localities.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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138. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will address the exorbitant costs of graduate entry medicine courses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59755/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The fee payable by a student can vary depending on a variety factors including the type of course and the student's access route including previous education. Students pursuing Graduate Entry Medicine programmes do so as second degree courses and consequently are not eligible for free fees funding or for student grants.

The total level of fees charged to graduate entry medicine students is a matter for the higher education institutions, consistent with the principle of their institutional autonomy, and it is not open to my Department to intervene in the tuition fee policy of the institutions.

However, the State does provide support directly to higher education institutions for Graduate Entry Medicine programmes in order to widen access and assist the students pursuing these programmes. The balance of fees is payable by the student.

In July 2022, Government approved a proposal from my Department and the Department of Health to increase the number of medicine places per annum by 200 by 2026, and move the funding of medicine places to a more sustainable basis. This has included an increase of 60 places in 2022/2023; 55 of these places are on direct entry programmes, and five are Graduate Entry Medicine.

For new Graduate Entry Medicine places, the State contribution will increase to €14,500 (from the current level of €11,950). For existing places, an increase in the State contribution will be phased in to this level.

This measure is designed to strengthen the sustainability of funding of Graduate Entry Medicine places and to increase the number of places on offer to Irish/EU students.

Student undertaking Graduate Entry Medicine courses that experience significant financial hardship may be eligible to apply to the Student Assistance Fund (SAF) for financial support. Students with a previous higher education qualification at the same NFQ level, or who, in the past, attended higher education without ultimately obtaining a qualification, may be considered for support on a case-by-case basis and subject to available funding. Details of this fund are available from the Access Office in the third level institution attended.

Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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139. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide an update on the uptake of the Erasmus programme for the 2022/2023 academic year among students in Irish third-level institutions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59115/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As the Erasmus Grant Agreement letters are currently being finalised with the Higher Education Institutions, my officials have been advised by the Higher Education Authority that it is not possible to give an indication of any mobility uptake for the 2022/ 2023 academic year. However, I will write to the Deputy as soon as the information becomes available.

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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140. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the progress that has been made regarding the efforts to move towards common entry to a range of college course to reduce the pressure of the points race on Leaving Certificate students; and if he will outline the other steps which his Department might take to facilitate Leaving Certificate reform. [58930/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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It is a key priority of my Department to ensure that all learners have access to the right courses for them, across the spectrum of provision in Tertiary Education. Additional capacity has been created in higher education programmes- in June I announces over one thousand additional places from September 2022.

Part of the transitions reform agenda aimed to provide a broader experience for undergraduate students with specialisation later. The higher education System Performance Framework which ran from 2018 – 2020 included an indicator in relation to progress made against the commitment to reduce the number of level 8 programmes and broader entry routes.

Data published as part of the Education Indicators for Ireland report indicates that the number of entry routes has decreased over the last number of years, from 1,313 in 2014 to 1,244 in 2020. Data for 2021 is expected to be published shortly.

There is additional capacity being created in apprenticeships, and I am committed to building on this progress through continued implementation of the Apprenticeship Action Plan. There are also a wide range of other excellent further education and training options available to learners and these options are now available on the CAO website. There are many pathways in the education system, and I encourage any potential learners to consider them all.

The Minister for Education announced plans for senior cycle reform in March. My Department will continue to actively engage with the Department of Education and the third level sector to improve the transitions from second to third level education.