Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1037. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update on the Programme for Government commitment to examine the provision of the personal assistants initiative for persons with a disability in third level institutions to ensure consistency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39530/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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Supporting the participation and success of learners with disabilities is a critical national priority.

Officials from my Department are currently taking the next step on establishing a working group of key stakeholders to identify how the Department could work with and link to existing transition processes and to ensure that students and parents are provided with the information they need to access the third-level sector.

The aim is to map the provision of supports and services across FE and HE, and document the levels of supports and services provided, identify models of good practice, and identify the support gaps across the system.

On the employment side, it is our intention, with the assistance of a steering group to develop a potential model to support students with disabilities seeking work experience opportunities and / or employment.

This project aligns with the National Disability Strategy, which is due to be published in 2025, and Ireland’s commitments under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1038. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update as of July 2025 on the Programme for Government commitment to develop and promote projects which build links and understanding with other EU capitals and regions in the fields of culture, education, research and innovation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39531/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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My Department has responsibility for further and higher education as well as research and innovation. The referenced commitment is part of the Government’s overall commitment to strengthening Ireland’s place in and contribution to the European Union.

My Department is supporting and promoting three important initiatives which build links and understanding throughout the European Union. These are:

Horizon Europe - which is the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation and which facilitates collaboration between researchers and innovators across European higher education and research institutions and as well as between companies.

Eramsus+ which is the EU's programme to support education, training, youth and sport in Europe. This programme places a strong focus on social inclusion, the green and digital transitions, and promoting young people’s participation in democratic life. As well as higher education academic exchange opportunities promoted through the Higher Education Authority, Léargas, manages international and national exchange programmes in education, youth and community work, and vocational education and training. These exchanges connect people in different communities and EU countries and bring an international dimension to the work of organisations across Ireland.

The European Social Fund+ Employment, Inclusion, Skills and Training (EIST) programme which provides supports for people to acquire new qualifications and skills to get them into jobs and also supports a more inclusive society, with equal opportunities for young people, women and disadvantaged groups.

These programmes are playing a major role in supporting the achievement of the Programme for Government commitment referred to in the Deputy's question.

Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1039. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update as of July 2025 on the Programme for Government commitment to continue to provide and broaden funding for research bodies or institutions which have an independent cross-border studies agenda; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39532/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy may be aware that my Department, through the Higher Education Authority and Research Ireland, has leveraged the Shared Island fund to establish collaborative research programmes under the first call of the North-South Research Programme. This amounted to €37 million. A further €70 million has been allocated to the establishment of two Co-centres for Research on a North-South and East-West basis. Both of these major initiatives have been delivered in close collaboration with key stakeholders in Northern Ireland and across the rest of the UK.

Last year, the HEA issued a second Call for Proposals under the North-South Research Programme, and €16 million has been set aside for this. The report of the Expert Assessment Panel is just recently available and I anticipate that a formal announcement of the results will be made shortly.

Finally, the feasibility of a third co-centre was discussed in the context of the recent Ireland-UK summit between the Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister. Given that this innovative collaborative model is a recent development, my intention is to assess the impact and effectiveness of the two existing co-centres once they have been performing for an appropriate period of time and to take the learning from this assessment into consideration of the further development of the co-centres model.

Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1040. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update as of July 2025 on the Programme for Government commitment to create research fellowships to strengthen Ireland’s appeal to top-tier academic and research talent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39533/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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There is a comprehensive and ambitious set of commitments for research and innovation in the Programme for Government. This work, including the commitment to create research fellowships to strengthen Ireland’s appeal to top-tier academic and research talent, will be progressed via a number of policies, primarily under Impact 2030: Ireland’s Research and Innovation Strategy.

Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland funds partnerships of all scales, from curiosity-driven research across all disciplines and career stages, including early-career researchers, to large-scale research and innovation mechanisms.

In June 2025 I announced €23 million in Research Ireland funding to support 36 projects for early-career researchers. By aligning with Ireland’s national research priorities, these projects will help drive advancements in key sectors.

The Research Ireland Fellowship Programme will see early career researchers be based in Research Ireland for up to two years. Research Ireland will select candidates who are open to taking on new projects outside their current expertise and have ongoing interest in career progression. Research Ireland Fellowship placements will commence during October 2025.

I have also announced the launch of Global Talent Ireland, a bold new initiative to attract international research talent to Ireland. Initial planning is focused on attracting approximately 45 researchers in the coming 3-year period. The investment required will not only facilitate the projects the researchers are investigating, it will also attract further high-calibre talent and add to the knowledge and skills base within the Irish?University?landscape.

In addition, there are a broad suite of opportunities under Horizon Europe’s Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), to build and promote high-impact research fellowships. By strategically expanding its engagement with MSCA instruments, Ireland can substantially enhance the scale, global competitiveness, and transformative potential of its research fellowship landscape.

Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1041. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update as of July 2025 on the Programme for Government commitment to ensure that distinct funding programmes for research in the humanities and social sciences are maintained; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39534/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The formation of Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland in August 2024 is an essential aspect of the Impact 2030 Strategy, designed to support the development of a more effective and cohesive national research and innovation ecosystem.

Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland is working with the Higher Education Authority (HEA) and others to ensure delivery of Ireland's research and innovation ambitions. A core goal of the agency is strengthening our national performance in all disciplines and in innovation. Research and innovation is being funded by the agency on a statutory basis across all disciplines and fields for the first time, ensuring parity of esteem and also scope for stronger engagement in transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary research. Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (AHSS) researchers are also now able to lead teams in a way that was not possible under the previous agency structure, and funding application processes will be more straightforward for researchers to engage with.

The agency is currently undertaking a programme of extensive stakeholder engagement across the country, with events in Galway, Cork, Limerick, and Dublin taking place earlier this year to discuss future planning for the new agency, including stakeholders from across academia, enterprise, and the public sector.

The online Research Ireland Full Corporate Plan Consultation Survey ran until April this year, and the Research Ireland Forum in Dublin in June also provided a very informative stakeholder engagement opportunity, and this input will be critical in ensuring that future agency programme planning further strengthens the excellent ongoing development of our research and innovation ecosystem. There are also ongoing agency consultations with Government Departments, national research funding bodies, and international research funding bodies, to ensure that the new agency corporate plan meets sectoral needs, particularly attracting, developing, and retaining research talent.

The development of the Agency’s final corporate plan is in process and due for completion at the end of 2025.

Significant progress has been made to align and integrate research funding administrative processes, such as the development of a single grant award terms and conditions, and related research policies. Work to integrate funding application processes via one central website continues at pace and is on track for delivery in Q4 2025. Work to deliver and transition to one central grant management system is also on track.

Work has progressed significantly to align similar funding programmes to create greater efficiency in the system, which will provide more regularity of funding calls for early career and senior research professors in the long term. Examples of this include the recently opened ‘Research Ireland Enterprise Fellowship Programme’ which is taking a step-wise approach to the alignment of the former SFI Industry RD&I Partnership programme (Placement stream) and the former IRC Enterprise Partnership Scheme Postdoctoral programme (Partnership strand), by running both legacy programmes under a common banner. The Industry RD&I Partnership will now accept applications from Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (AHSS), while the Enterprise Partnership Scheme eligibility criteria will be broadened by removing the 5-year post-PhD cap.

A New Investigators Programme is due to open in the coming weeks, which sees the merging of the (former IRC) Starting & Consolidator Laureate Programme and the (former SFI) Frontiers for the Future Projects Programme. It will be open to all disciplines and all types of cutting-edge research. It will also accommodate multi/inter-disciplinary research proposals.

This progress has been achieved by Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland while continuing to deliver on its commitment to maintaining a ‘business as usual’ funding environment for the community. The recent Pathway awards, which funds across AHSS and STEM, saw €23M invested in 32 early career researchers, across a broad range of disciplines, ensuring a broad impact on scientific discovery and societal progress. These projects, spanning 11 research institutions across the country, will help drive advancements in key sectors such as healthcare, environmental sustainability, history and education. Several of these are cofunded with other agencies such as the EPA, SEAI and Met Éireann highlighting the application of research across Government to benefit other sectors.

The agency will be working with stakeholders to continue to engage, encourage, and support our excellent researchers, and a strong research talent pipeline in all disciplines for Ireland.

Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)
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1042. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills for an update as of July 2025 on the Programme for Government commitment to implement the Autism Innovation Strategy and ensure the development of a successor strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39537/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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While my Department have certain actions within this strategy, the subject of this question does not fall under my remit and is more appropriate to the Department of Children, Disability and Equality. My officials have been in contact with that Department and they have advised that they would forward a response to you should you contact them directly.