Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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250. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills given the shortage of teaching staff, if her department is willing to allow those who have a level 8 qualification in early years education to teach in primary schools up to level of 2nd class; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3622/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Ensuring that every child's experience in school is positive and that they have qualified, engaged teachers available to support them in their learning is a priority area of action for the Government.

Department of Education regulations allow for the appointment of an unregistered person by a school in limited exceptions where a school has been unable to appoint a registered teacher in accordance with the normal appointment procedures.

An unregistered person must hold at least a level 7 qualification on the National Framework of Qualifications (withinthemeaningoftheQualificationsandQuality Assurance (Education and Training) Act 2012).

While my Department continues to engage closely with the school management bodies, teacher unions and other education stakeholders on developing measures aimed to improve the availability of teachers, and to identify additional measures which can be taken, it is not currently intended to amend the regulations covering the appointment of an unregistered person.

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin Bay North, Labour)
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252. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if there are any plans to reintroduce the teaching through Irish allowance for teachers in Irish-medium and Gaeltacht schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3647/24]

Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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265. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she intends to review her Department's position on allowances for teaching through the medium of Irish; if she intends to reinstate the allowance; if such allowances form a part of her Department’s strategy for increasing the use of the Irish language; and if a response will issue to the concerns of teachers (details supplied). [3769/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 251, 252 and 265 together.

My Department implemented the outcome of the public service-wide review of allowances and premium payments (September 2012) by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform which means that many allowances, including this one, were no longer payable to “new entrant” Teachers.

Circular 0008/2013 outlines the effect of this review on teachers. In common with a number of job-role based allowances, sanction for payment to new beneficiaries of the Teaching through Irish Allowance and Gaeltacht Allowance was withdrawn from 1st February 2012 under the terms of the Circular. Furthermore, if a teacher was eligible for receipt of the allowance prior to 1st February 2012 and subsequently left that job role on or after 1st February 2012 on a voluntary basis, their entitlement to the allowance ceases from the date of the move and they cannot re-gain entitlement.

Additional amendments to Teacher Terms and Conditions, including pay and allowances, can only be achieved through engagement and collective bargaining agreements between the Government and the public service unions. Over the course of recent collective agreements amendments have been agreed including that “new entrant” teachers had the equivalent of an honours primary degree allowance integrated into their salary scale.

Any further amendments to alter the allowances paid to teachers, whether “new entrant” or not, give rise to significant cost issues and should, as mentioned, be part of engagement and collective agreements between Unions and Government. Any review of the eligibility criteria for qualification allowances can occur only under that process.