Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 December 2020
466. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if fractured industrial relations at Waterford Institute of Technology pose a risk to the timely achievement of a technological university for the southeast; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41168/20]
View answerUnder the statutory framework detailed in the Technological Universities Act 2018, it is a matter, in the first instance, for the relevant Institutes of Technology participating in a TU development consortium to progress their plans and, when ready, to make an application to the Minister seeking an order establishing a TU subject to their meeting the eligibility criteria prescribed in the 2018 Act.
The Government recognises the urgency attached to the requirement for a technological university for the South East of Ireland as the only region in the State that does not have the benefit of a university presence and is committed to delivering on the Programme for Government commitment in this regard.
In July I announced the appointment by the Technological University for the South East of Ireland (TUSEI) development consortium of Mr Tom Boland, former Chief Executive of the Higher Education Authority, as an independent programme executive director to drive to completion the submission of an application for TU designation under the 2018 Act.
Mr. Boland’s appointment and subsequent work he has embarked on with the staff, students and stakeholders of both IT Carlow and Waterford IT represents a step change in the pace of the project. The consortium completed a detailed project plan covering all aspects of the project completed in October. The plan is fed by 8 detailed work stream sub-plans contributed to, in turn, by 31 working groups with a combined total of over 300 staff participating.
I met the Presidents of the two institutes along with the Chairpersons of their governing bodies and Mr. Boland in late October and we discussed their progress to date. Subsequently my Department is monitoring the progression of the TUSEI consortium plan on a monthly basis with the programme executive director and will continue to do so up to the making of an application which the consortium anticipates making by the end of April 2021.
In terms of the ongoing commitment of the Waterford IT staff in particular to the delivery of a TU in the South East this is evidenced by the overwhelming acceptance of 93% of the Teachers’ Union Ireland branch at the Institute when balloted last year on the TUSEI consortium proposal. The Institute’s staff are continuing to drive the TUSEI project through active leadership and participation in the various TUSEI working groups established since the appointment of the new programme executive director earlier this year.
I am assured that the management, staff and students of Waterford IT are fully committed to working with their colleagues and counterparts in IT Carlow towards the establishment of a new technological university in the South East by 2022.
