Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 March 2022
57. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the progress that has been made under the national development plan for an increase in investment in further education and training infrastructure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12763/22]
View answerThe Minister's capital budget for 2020 was €20 million and it is due to go to €100 million by 2025. I would like to get a sense of the direction of travel of that investment and what kind of priorities the Minister has within the infrastructure budget for his Department and for further education generally.
Under the national development plan published last October, the Government has committed to a significant and much needed step-up in investment in further education and training infrastructure, including the realisation of what we call FET Colleges of the Future and expansion of apprenticeship delivery.
In the context of this commitment, I was very pleased to announce in February the parameters of this ambitious new phase of capital investment in the further education and training sector. This investment will include a FET College of the Future major projects fund, supporting projects to drive reform of the FET sector, including consolidation of provision in high quality facilities, integration of further education and training and realisation of centres of excellence. It is open to every ETB now to put forward ideas. I know from my visit to Deputy Calleary's county that there are already ideas coming from Mayo in this regard. That is the futuristic piece; what we want to do in terms of a new way of delivering and having a modern, fit for purpose FET college. The second funding call for FET is equally important. It is a strategic infrastructure upgrade fund, supporting smaller-scale investments in existing FET infrastructure which are also aligned with FET College of the Future principles. We are all very proud of the work that FET does but we also know it has been starved of capital for far too long. This is for the projects that might needed to be done for which there has not been funding in the past. Those two competitive calls are now open. It is up to each ETB to prioritise and put forward their projects.
Overall, as the Deputy has said, capital investment in the FET sector is expected to increase from expenditure of less than €20 million in 2020 to over €100 million a year by 2025. That is a very significant increase. The sector is excited about it. We need to build capacity in the sector not just to identify projects but to deliver them as well. The next phase of investment will position the sector to cater for rising demand, offering a comprehensive range of complementary options for learners. There will also be a specific focus on apprenticeship facilities and the ability to ramp up apprenticeship provision, particularly in provincial Ireland.
I certainly welcome the level of investment. Recently I visited the Mayo College of Education Ballina campus where they are doing some really fantastic work. We also had the Minister of State, Deputy Niall Collins, launch the new national outdoor education and training strategy at the Achill college. I congratulate Michael and all the team there. They have seen investment. Can the Minister tell me that this process is open to every ETB to apply for? In the context of hospitality, for instance, we are facing a major crisis of staffing within the sector. The Minister is probably too young to remember the fantastic work done by CERT - I am not, unfortunately. We need to go back to that kind of local, industry-based model. It strikes me that the FET colleges are ideally placed to do that for tourism and hospitality centres around the country. The Minister mentioned to Deputy Ó Murchú the five centres for deep energy retrofit working.
It strikes me as odd that one of them would not be located in Mayo, given the prospects for the county in terms of wind and offshore energy generation, which involves particular skills. I support the call by Deputy Conway-Walsh for the location of a centre in Ballyhaunis.
The time is up but the Deputy will be able to come back in presently.
I hear clearly what the Deputy is saying in regard to Ballyhaunis and the importance of that project for County Mayo. It certainly is the case that these funding calls are open to all ETBs. More than that, I expect all ETBs to come forward with projects. I want to be able to fund €430 million of capital expenditure across further and higher education between now and 2024, 45% of that being in the further education and training space. In fact, I want to do more than that. I would like us to have what we have never before had in further education and training, which is a pipeline of projects. That has been done really well in the Department of Education in regard to schools building projects. We all know where schools are on building lists. We might argue over the pace of development but we all know where schools stand. We need to have shovel-ready projects in further education and training in order that we can fund a significant tranche, amounting to €100 million worth of projects, each year by the middle of the decade and also to ensure we have projects constantly coming on stream.
It is up to each ETB to prioritise, which is important. Each board needs to decide on the two or three big projects it wants to see progressed. If they do so, do it well and put in good applications, I believe we can see good news for each ETB across the country in this round of allocations.
I welcome that plan. Every ETB should be encouraged to prioritise the existing strengths of each region and the educational opportunities that are available. It is important that the Minister takes an interest, as I know he will, in the Ballyhaunis project and that there is encouragement for those involved to identify and pursue opportunities. I certainly will be happy to work with him on a location in Mayo for deep energy retrofitting and the provision of the skills necessary in terms of wind farm and offshore operation.
I welcome the investment the Minister and his Department have committed to the south-east region under the national development plan. Where are we at in terms of the full integration of Carlow College, St. Patrick's into the higher education system? Will it be possible to expedite the integration process following the establishment of the technological university from 1 May?
I certainly will take an interest in Ballyhaunis and would be delighted to visit the town with Deputy Calleary. Between the work we are doing in terms of the ETBs, capital funding and Atlantic Technological University coming into being at the start of April, it is an exciting time for further and higher education in the north west, including Mayo. I look forward to working with the Deputy on that.
I thank Deputy Murnane O'Connor for all the work she has done in regard to Carlow College, St. Patrick's, for bringing me there and for the time she has given me on this issue. I acknowledge that the college has played a major role in higher education in Carlow and the south east. I thank the president, Fr. Conn, for his time and courtesy to me. It will not come as a shock or news to anyone when I say that the question of integration into a technological university is a matter for the university in question, which, in this instance, will come into being at the start of May. I would like to work with Carlow College on this. My officials will be meeting with representatives this week to ensure the college can be as well-positioned as possible to put forward a strong case for integration. I look forward to working closely with the Deputy on this.
