Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)
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906. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills whether he is satisfied that the current balance between EU and non-EU undergraduate medical students at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland aligns with national workforce planning objectives; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68445/26]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The Government has made healthcare workforce expansion a key priority in support of the delivery of Sláintecare, the Programme for Government and wider health service reform objectives. Expansion decisions are informed by workforce projections and service needs identified by the Department of Health, the HSE and other Government partners, ensuring that investment in healthcare education capacity is aligned with national workforce requirements.

A key element of this approach has been the implementation of the 2022 Medicine Expansion Agreement, which is providing 200 additional annual medicine places across Irish medical schools. This is complemented by a range of other approved healthcare workforce expansion measures designed to increase the supply of Irish and EU healthcare graduates and support the long-term workforce needs of the Irish health service.

The Government has also supported significant expansion across healthcare education more broadly, including medicine, nursing, dentistry, pharmacy, veterinary medicine and a range of Health and Social Care Professions. These investments are intended to strengthen the domestic education pipeline, reduce long-term reliance on international recruitment and ensure the State has the workforce required to meet future health and social care needs.

Higher Education Institutions are autonomous bodies with responsibility for decisions relating to admissions, programme delivery and student recruitment, including the admission of Irish/EU and international students, subject to the relevant legislative and regulatory frameworks.

RCSI as a private college plays an important role within Ireland's medical education system and makes a significant contribution to the training of both domestic and international medical students. First-year undergraduate medicine enrolment data indicate that Irish and EU students represented approximately two-thirds of the first-year undergraduate medicine intake at RCSI in recent years, with 120 Irish/EU students and 60 non-EU students enrolled in 2022/23, 115 Irish/EU students and 70 non-EU students enrolled in 2023/24, and 115 Irish/EU students and 70 non-EU students enrolled in 2024/25.

The position in relation to undergraduate medical education is being considered within a wider strategic framework focused on increasing Irish and EU training capacity and supporting future healthcare workforce requirements. While institutions retain responsibility for their admissions policies, the Government's priority is to continue expanding domestic healthcare education capacity through targeted investment and workforce planning measures, including the ongoing rollout of the 200 additional annual medicine places provided under the 2022 Medicine Expansion Agreement and other healthcare workforce expansion initiatives.

Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)
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907. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills whether the 612 additional healthcare education places announced in August 2026 are restricted to Irish and EU students; if not, the number that may be allocated to non-EU students; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68444/26]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The additional healthcare education places approved by Government in August 2026 form part of a broader programme of healthcare workforce expansion being delivered in support of national workforce planning priorities, including the implementation of Sláintecare and the Programme for Government. The additional healthcare education places approved by Government are intended to address identified workforce shortages and increase the supply of healthcare professionals available to work in Ireland's health, disability and social care services. As such, the Government-funded expansion measures are primarily targeted on increasing capacity for Irish and EU students.

Since 2022, Government has approved over 1,600 additional annual healthcare training places across medicine, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine and a range of Health and Social Care Professions. This includes 612 places approved under the 2022 healthcare expansion measures, 200 additional annual medicine places under the 2022 Medicine Expansion Agreement, and a further 735 places approved through subsequent healthcare workforce expansion measures in 2025 and 2026. These investments are designed to increase domestic training capacity and support the long-term workforce needs identified by the Department of Health, the HSE and other Government partners.

The Government's objective in supporting these additional places is to strengthen Ireland's domestic healthcare workforce pipeline and ensure that sufficient numbers of healthcare professionals are trained to meet future service needs. While international students continue to make an important contribution to Irish higher education and the wider economy, these healthcare expansion measures are being delivered in response to national workforce planning requirements and are intended principally to support the education and training of healthcare professionals for the Irish health and social care system.

Higher Education Institutions are autonomous bodies with responsibility for admissions and student recruitment, including the admission of Irish, EU and international students, subject to relevant legislative, regulatory and funding arrangements.

Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)
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908. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Question No. 788 of 14 May 2026 relating to pharmacy student numbers, to provide an update on the tabular data referred to; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [68441/26]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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Further to my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 788 of 14 May 2026, the updated information provided by the Higher Education Authority in respect of Year 1 students enrolled on undergraduate pharmacy programmes is set out in the table below.

The data show that the number of students enrolled in the first year of undergraduate pharmacy programmes increased from 245 in 2022/23 to 305 in 2024/25, an increase of approximately 24% over the period.

This increase reflects the Government's ongoing commitment to expanding healthcare education capacity in line with national workforce planning requirements. As outlined in my previous response, the Government secured a €28.5 million investment in 2026 to support the delivery of over 1,100 additional healthcare training places annually over the next three years, including 161 additional pharmacy places.

In addition to increasing capacity within existing programmes, pharmacy education provision has expanded significantly in recent years through the establishment of new pharmacy programmes at Atlantic Technological University and the University of Galway in 2025, with a further programme commencing at South East Technological University in 2026. These developments will support the continued growth in pharmacy student numbers and help meet future workforce needs across the health service.

My Department will continue to work closely with the Higher Education Authority, the Department of Health and higher education institutions to support the sustainable expansion of pharmacy education capacity as part of the Government's wider commitment to strengthening the healthcare workforce in line with the objectives of Sláintecare and the Programme for Government.