Results 1,121-1,140 of 1,071,541 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Tom Kitt OR speaker:Peadar Tóibín OR speaker:Francis Noel Duffy)
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Education and Training Boards (8 Jul 2025)
Question No. 111 taken with Written Answers.
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Education and Training Boards (8 Jul 2025)
Question No. 112 taken with Question No. 104.
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Education and Training Boards (8 Jul 2025)
Question No. 113 taken with Written Answers.
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Further and Higher Education (8 Jul 2025)
Further and Higher Education
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Further and Higher Education (8 Jul 2025)
Naoise Ó Muirí: 114. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if there is a detailed plan on how the National Training Fund will be expanded; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37309/25]
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Further and Higher Education (8 Jul 2025)
James Lawless: I thank the Deputy. There is a simple answer, but since the Deputy probably wants some details, I will tell him a bit more. I am very passionate and excited about the opportunity we have provided through the National Training Fund. There is a surplus in the fund of almost €1.5 billion and that has been accumulated through employer contributions over several years. The issue today...
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Maeve O'Connell: I thank the Minister of State. There have been some notable successes. For example, with aircraft mechanics, women's participation has gone from 11% to 18%. That is possibly an area from where we could take some learnings on it. One of the other things I wanted to follow up on is the fact the targets for female participation are quite ambitious. From 2023 to 2025, we are looking for an...
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Marian Harkin: I thank the Deputy. The main area we are looking at there is the area of hairdressing. It is the one area where that would have increased. Gender balance in craft apprenticeships has increased significantly since the launch of the action plan, with the number of female craft apprenticeships more than doubling from 260 to 533, an increase of exactly 105%. I will be honest with the Deputy....
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Maeve O'Connell: I thank the Minister of State. I will come back to the bursary again. Are there specific sectors where the uptake was more than others? Is there thus an opportunity to target other sectors with low representation, particularly of women? I agree and assumed hairdressing was the one area where there might be a balance to be struck. Are there learnings from sectors which may have been more...
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Marian Harkin: As I explained, the increase in craft apprenticeships is quite significant. We also have another campaign, the faces, facts, futures campaign, which was launched in 2023 and connects all-girls schools in the country with the National Apprentice Office, which publicised this campaign. Looking at registration figures for apprenticeships, they have increased significantly since the launch of...
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Question No. 107 taken with Question No. 104.
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Third Level Education (8 Jul 2025)
Third Level Education
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Third Level Education (8 Jul 2025)
Naoise Ó Muirí: 108. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the impact of the increases in the SUSI grant levels introduced in 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37308/25]
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Third Level Education (8 Jul 2025)
James Lawless: I thank the Deputy. I welcome this question. It is an opportunity to talk about the impact the SUSI grant can have. There has been continued investment and improvement with it but there is still more we can do. If we look at certain measures within the schemes and bands, there is an opportunity to go further there. Significant improvements have been made over the last number of years....
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Third Level Education (8 Jul 2025)
Naoise Ó Muirí: It is very interesting if you look at the data, particularly for mature students. This is over a period of time. I do not think it is for that particular year but for mature honours degree students aged 23 and over, 71% of SUSI grant recipients completed their degree compared with 65% of those who did not get SUSI support. It seems that mature students get through at a better rate if they...
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Apprenticeship Programmes
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Ruairí Ó Murchú: 101. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to provide an update on the progress made regarding the funding issues at SOLAS and ETB apprenticeship training programmes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37556/25]
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Ruairí Ó Murchú: I ask for an update on the progress made on the funding issue at SOLAS and the ETBs and the impact this is having on apprenticeships, the community sector and adult education within further education. Will the Minister provide some detail? We have all heard of a hole in the budget of between €40 million and €50 million but some clarity on that would be appreciated.
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
James Lawless: In fairness, the Deputy was one of the first to raise this matter in the House a few weeks ago. He and Deputy Cullinane raised it in Topical Issues a couple of weeks back. As he is aware from that engagement, my Department and I were informed that, following engagements between SOLAS and ETBs on budgets, a funding pressure was identified for the 2025 apprenticeship budget. As I said a few...
- Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (8 Jul 2025)
Ruairí Ó Murchú: Can we get a figure for how big a hole we are talking about? I have heard it is between €40 million and €50 million and I have heard in relation to Louth and Meath ETB that it is between €8 million and €11 million-plus. It is necessary that the Minister engage with SOLAS. Like Deputy O'Sullivan, I think at some point we will need to know how this came about....