Written Answers Nos. 644-657
644. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will outline the strategic plans for the new national apprenticeship office; the timeframe for each item; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32091/22]
View answerKey to the delivery of the ambition set out in the Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-25 is a new organisational architecture, involving a National Apprenticeship Office (NAO) and National Apprenticeship Alliance (NAA). The Office will have responsibility for all aspects of the management, oversight, and development of the apprenticeship system and for implementing the Action Plan. Under this plan the NAO will exercise the relevant functions of SOLAS and the Higher Education Authority (HEA).
This represents a significant structural reform in the positioning and delivery of apprenticeship into the future. It will allow for responsive delivery of collaborative learning opportunities supported by industry and the further and higher education and training sector, and provide the essential basis for significant expansion of the system.
With its first Director having now been appointed, the NAO will deliver additional practical supports and information for employers and apprentices seeking to engage with apprenticeship. The staffing structure of the office and budget for 2022 have been agreed and early achievements include overseeing the introduction the new €2000 employer grant, the €2666 gender based bursary, and the establishment of the NAA.
Traffic on apprenticeship.ie has also increased as a direct result of the inclusion of apprenticeship options on the CAO website from November 2021, with over 30,000 click-throughs from the CAO site.
In tandem with these actions, the apprenticeship agenda is being promoted on an ongoing basis through Generation Apprenticeship. This is a national campaign to drive awareness of apprenticeship opportunities across a broad audience of stakeholders (radio, digital, billboard). The campaigns promote a number of key initiatives under the Generation Apprenticeship banner, targeting the employer audience regarding the Gender Bursary and Employer Grant, and targeting students, parents, and guidance counsellors regarding opportunities in apprenticeship. Award ceremonies for both the employer and apprentice of the year will take place instilling pride & confidence in apprenticeship achievements in Ireland.
The NAO Director is currently providing the leadership required to address the next stage of the NAO’s development, including finalising a work programme for 2022 and the development and implementation of solid governance and financial arrangements, aligned with the Action Plan, in consultation with SOLAS, the HEA, my Department and other key partners. A sum of €1 million has been allocated in Budget 2022 for the first year of the NAO’s operation.
645. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science his views on the expiration of stamp 2 visas for persons who were enrolled as English language students in the State; and if his attention has been drawn to persons engaged in such courses who are now unable to access their classes due to the expiration of their visas. [32273/22]
View answerThe administration and regulation of immigration permissions, including the entry and residence conditions of non-EEA students who are granted a Stamp 2 immigration permission, are a matter for the Minister for Justice and queries related to these permissions should be addressed to my colleague in the first instance.
Stamp 2 permissions allow non-EEA students to come to Ireland to study on English language education (ELE) programmes. ELE students can avail of up to three permissions, each of eight-month duration, to pursue these studies. In addition, Stamp 2 permission holders can work for a maximum of 20 hours a week during term time and for 40 hours a week during designated Summer and Christmas holiday periods. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic these permissions were extended nine times to allow people who held a valid permission to be in the State in March 2020 to be legally permitted to remain here until 31 May 2022.
On 27 May 2022 Minister McEntee announced the arrangements for the renewal and registration of immigration permissions post 31 May 2022 which include bridging arrangements for ELE students transitioning to third level education. Students who have completed their maximum of three eight-month English language courses and who intend to enrol in third level for an undergraduate or graduate course beginning in the Autumn were able to apply for a short-term letter of permission based on their proof of application/enrolment. This application window was open until 13 June 2022. This short-term permission will be valid until the start of their new course and the conditions attached to their current permissions continue to apply. Further information on these arrangements can be found here: irishimmigration.ie/statement-from-the-minister-for-justice-on-the-arrangements-for-the-renewal-and-registration-of-immigration-permissions-post-31-may-2022/
646. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if a person (details supplied) will quality for any support towards travel or tuition; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32276/22]
View answerThe main financial support available to eligible students attending full-time further and higher education courses is the statutory based Student Grant Scheme administered by SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland). At further education level this may include a maintenance grant depending on eligibility. The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for the centralised student grant awarding authority SUSI to determine. Under the terms of the Student Grant Scheme, grant assistance is awarded to students attending an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding, including those relating to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means.
With regard to this specific student, I have been advised by my officials that the student in question has not yet submitted an application to SUSI.
647. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science when he anticipates the preferred tenderers for bundle 1 of higher education private public partnerships projects will be selected; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32434/22]
View answerBundle 1 of the Higher Education Public Private Partnership Programme, comprising six projects, is currently at preferred tenderer stage. A Preferred Tenderer has been appointed and the technical and commercial work streams are currently ongoing. It is currently estimated that the programme will achieve financial close in Q3 2022 with construction activities commencing on all six sites immediately thereafter. The construction duration for the projects is in the region of 24 months and hence the facilities are estimated to become operational from Q4 2024 onwards.
648. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he has plans to introduce an income-contingent maintenance support fund for higher education as outlined in the recently published economic evaluation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32435/22]
View answerOn the 4th of May I launched Funding the Future – a landmark policy on the future of higher education.
Funding the Future was created as part of a Department of Further and Higher Education, Research and Innovation response to the commissioned independent report Increasing the Sustainability of Higher and Further Education in Ireland and the separate independent review of the Student Grant Scheme, conducted in response to a Programme for Government commitment to review SUSI eligibility criteria, adjacency rates and postgraduate grant supports.
Funding the Future, which was approved for publication by Government, settles the question on funding Higher Education. The Government has decided that income contingent loans will not form part of the future funding model.
Instead, the Government is committing to a multi-funded model of additional Exchequer investment and employer contributions through the National Training Fund and student contribution. It is also my intention that in response to the cost of education and living, a reduced reliance on student contributions will be a feature of future reforms.
The policy sets out the vision and direction of higher education funding, our commitment to addressing legacy issues in higher education and detailing our ambitious plans for investment and reform. This includes:
- planned additional investment of €307 million to address core funding challenges for our institutions, that will be made over a number of years through annual budgetary processes. This does not account for future demographic needs or new policy proposals for higher education.
- plans to consider options to address cost as a barrier to higher education, and how we will pursue funding measures on these issues through the Estimates process, including in respect of reductions to the student contribution and enhancements to the SUSI grant in line with the Student Grant Review.
Additional detail is available on the gov.ie website at the following location: gov.ie/en/policy-information/49e56-future-funding-in-higher-education/
649. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science further to parliamentary question No. 431 of 2 June 2022, the intended timeframe for the construction of bundle 1 and bundle 2; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32436/22]
View answerBundle 1 of the Higher Education Public Private Partnership Programme, comprising six projects, is currently at preferred tenderer stage. A Preferred Tenderer has been appointed and the technical and commercial work streams are currently ongoing. It is currently estimated that the programme will achieve financial close in Q3 2022 with construction activities commencing on all six sites immediately thereafter. The construction duration for the projects is in the region of 24 months and hence the facilities are estimated to become operational from Q4 2024 onwards.
Bundle 2 of the Higher Education Public Private Partnership programme, comprising five projects, is currently at tender (competitive dialogue) stage. Construction price inflation and volatility in the construction market is presenting challenges, however, the procuring authority comprising of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research Innovation and Science, the National Development Finance Agency and the Higher Education Authority is working within the parameters of the procurement process to manage these challenges.
Notwithstanding this, it is currently estimated that the programme will achieve financial close in Q1 2023 with construction activities commencing on all five sites immediately thereafter. The construction duration for the projects is also in the region of 24 months and hence the facilities are estimated to become operational from Q1 2025 onwards.
650. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the number of €2,000 payments made for each type of apprentice under the employer grant to date; the percentage of application per apprentices registered in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32437/22]
View answerThe introduction of a new Employer Grant of €2,000 per apprentice per annum is a significant deliverable under the Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025. Its introduction means that, for the first time, employers of all apprentices will now have access to financial support, either through direct payment of allowances to apprentices or through this employer grant. In this way, employers of all apprentices will have some of the cost of the apprenticeship defrayed, promoting engagement with the non-craft programmes and balancing Government priorities in terms of meeting strategic skills needs through targeted interventions. It will also encourage more employers to engage with a wider range of apprenticeships and help to encourage the development of new programmes.
The Employer Grant provides financial support from the State to apprentice employers of one of the 40 apprenticeships that have been established since 2016 and do not attract payment of off-the-job training allowances.
The grant was officially launched on the 26 May 2022. Eligible employers were invited by email to apply for the grant via an online portal system. With social media, TV, and radio campaigns planned and launched to promote the grant, it is anticipated that a high level of applications will be made.
As of June 16 2022;
- 70 employer applications with 126 eligible apprentices have been received
- 30 employer applications with 46 eligible apprentices have been paid
Further details of claims per apprenticeship programme and associated percentages are included in tabular form in the attached table.
651. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science further to parliamentary question Nos. 1217 and 1262 of 14 June 2022, if he will provide a further and complete breakdown for Irish, European Union and non-European Union places. [32507/22]
View answerA breakdown of total undergraduate enrolments in healthcare and welfare disciplines by domicile is in the table below. This data is from the HEA's Student Records System and refers to the 2020/21 academic year, the latest available.
|
ISCED Detailed Field of Study |
Ireland |
GB/NI/Other-EU |
Non-EU |
Total Enrolments |
|
(0913) Nursing and midwifery |
7878 |
119 |
120 |
8117 |
|
(0912) Medicine |
3825 |
236 |
3615 |
7676 |
|
(0923) Social work and counselling |
4369 |
15 |
28 |
4412 |
|
(0922) Child care and youth services |
3183 |
87 |
43 |
3313 |
|
(0915) Therapy and rehabilitation |
2667 |
34 |
62 |
2763 |
|
(0910) Health Not Further Defined |
1829 |
22 |
18 |
1869 |
|
(0914) Medical diagnostic and treatment technology |
1375 |
10 |
47 |
1432 |
|
(0916) Pharmacy |
1154 |
16 |
145 |
1315 |
|
(0911) Dental Studies |
482 |
17 |
215 |
714 |
|
Other |
268 |
2 |
2 |
272 |
|
Total |
27030 |
558 |
4295 |
31883 |
652. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the proposals that will be made to regularise contracts and establish a salary scale for adult education tutors in view of a recommendation of the Labour Court in March 2020 (details supplied); if the prior service of AETs will be acknowledged within any offer made; and the steps the Minister intends to make to bring post-2011 entrants' pay up to parity with their colleagues.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32518/22]
View answerThere has been a range of industrial relations issues pertaining to adult education tutors that have been under discussion for several years under the aegis of the Department of Education and Skills preceding the establishment of my Department.
Notwithstanding progress made on some elements, the claim to align tutors to a pay scale of an existing grade in Education and Training Boards (ETBs), as referred to in the March 2020 Labour Court recommendation, currently remains unresolved. This recommendation was made in March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic and consequently the Department's ability and capacity to develop a full response and engage on the issue was constrained by pressure of work arising from the public health emergency and the establishment of the Department during that period at which time responsibility for the claim transferred.
The Sectoral Bargaining Fund under Building Momentum is to deal with outstanding issues within the terms of the Fund and within the Exchequer funding limit in place. As the Department of Education leads negotiations for the ETB sector, my Department is liaising with it and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform with a view to finalising the official position at the earliest opportunity. An assessment of the costs involved in any alignment to a pay scale is being undertaken as part of this work. Officials met with TUI and SIPTU representatives on 18 May and it was agreed that a Working Group would be established to assist in that work.
Arising from the work of the group, I expect that my Department will in a position make a proposal to staff representatives at the earliest opportunity, with a view to resolving this issue.
653. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he has met with third level institutions to progress the establishment of a neurology nursing course in this State. [32561/22]
View answerEnsuring an appropriate pipeline of suitably qualified healthcare professionals is a key priority for my Department. The Programme for Government commits the Department of Health to working with the education sectors, regulators, and professional bodies to improve the availability of health professionals and reform their training to support integrated care across the entire health service.
Approximately 130 and 200 additional places were created in undergraduate nursing courses in 2020 and 2021 respectively, in response to both the pressures experienced by Leaving Certificate students and the needs of the health services. My officials are engaging with the Higher Education Authority and representatives from the higher education sector to examine the potential for targeted provision of additional places for the 2022 academic year in courses which satisfy specific skills needs, including nursing.
It is my understanding that neurology nursing is a postgraduate specialisation. As such, the establishment of any course in neurology nursing would be a matter for a higher education institution, in collaboration with the HSE and the NMBI.
My officials are actively engaging with the Department of Health on determining the longer term skills needs of the healthcare services, and the role which the further and higher education sector can play in meeting those skills needs.
654. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science further to parliamentary question No. 1298 of 14 June 2022, the amount that was recouped from overpayments through student repayments in 2019, 2020, 2021 and to date in 2022. [32815/22]
View answerThe complex nature of the student grant scheme means that there is a risk that some students receive grant payments for which they are not eligible, including for reasons beyond the direct control of SUSI.
To mitigate the risk of overpayments, SUSI implements procedural and system-based controls within its application assessment and grant payment operations. A highly developed quality assurance programme is implemented within the assessment process and a focused programme of independent post-assessment reviews are also performed across targeted risk areas.
The critical objective for SUSI is to identify and rectify errors on a timely basis before a grant is awarded and thus before any overpayment can arise. Issues identified from quality and post-assessment reviews are fed back into the assessment process through feedback and training on a current basis.
SUSI has a formal overpayments policy and implements repayment approaches that are sensitive to students’ means and circumstances
SUSI is obliged to attempt to recoup any grants issued to applicants who are not eligible for funding, as per section 24 of the SUSI Support Act 2011:
where a person, whether or not he or she is a student, has received moneys from an awarding authority that are in respect of a grant that the person is not entitled to receive, the person is liable to repay to the awarding authority on demand a sum not exceeding the amount of money received.”
The below table represents the total amount of overpayments recouped from students by academic year.
|
Academic Year |
Total € Amount recouped from Students |
|
2018/19 |
€181,550.54 |
|
2019/20 |
€234,189.53 |
|
2020/21 |
€340,789.38 |
|
2021/22 |
€72,248.36* |
*Data for current academic year (2021/22) may change as processing is ongoing.
655. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Justice if there is a Government commitment to promote the recognition of the crime of ecocide as part of the environmental crime directive revision discussion in the European Council; the way that he plans to recognise this commitment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31920/22]
View answerIreland recognises that multilateral responses are crucial to tackling environmental and climate-related challenges, and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications engages with relevant EU and UN structures to support these objectives, both directly and through cross-departmental participation as appropriate, but I am informed that it has not had any engagement in relation to ecocide becoming a recognised crime in international law.
The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications advises me that Ireland engages actively through the EU to support the development of ambitious global responses to these challenges, in particular through the United Nations. A number of UN Framework Conventions, particularly on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) provide mechanisms for international cooperation to tackle climate and ecological challenges, in particular through the adoption of ambitious treaties and agreements such as the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The Deputy will also be aware that the International Criminal Court (ICC) are examining the issue of ecocide. Any proposed amendments to the Rome Statute will be assessed by the relevant government departments and if there is sufficient support among States Parties for an agreed definition of ecocide, a formal amendment can be considered by the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute. The Environmental Crime Directive should not be confused with this process.
As the Deputy will be aware, the proposed Environmental Crime Directive is primarily a revision of Directive 2008/99/EC on the protection of the environment through criminal law that provides common minimum rules to criminalise environmental offences. The proposed Directive, which is currently the subject of negotiations, is concerned with environmental protection and ensuring that sanctions for environmental offences are effective.
The proposed Directive includes damage to an ecosystem as an aggravating circumstance under Article 8 of the proposal. All member states are actively engaged in discussions analysing all aspects of the Directive, including consideration of those related to the crime of ecocide.
656. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Justice her plans to promote the recognition of ecocide in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. [31922/22]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the International Criminal Court (ICC) was established by the 1998 Rome Statute as the world’s first permanent international criminal court, with the purpose of ending impunity for perpetrators of the world’s most heinous crimes. Ireland is a State Party to the Rome Statute and a strong supporter of the ICC as the cornerstone of a system of international criminal justice. The ICC currently exercises jurisdiction over crimes against humanity, war crimes, genocide and the crime of aggression.
The Department of Foreign Affairs has informed me of the initiative launched in June 2021 by the Independent Expert Panel for the Legal Definition of Ecocide . The Independent Expert Panel proposal provides a new definition of the crime of ecocide, which seeks to serve as the basis for consideration of an amendment to the Rome Statute of the ICC. The purpose of such an amendment would be to include ecocide as a new crime under the jurisdiction of the Court.
I am further informed by the Department of Foreign Affairs that the proposal to agree a legal definition of ecocide and to subsequently include it as a new international crime in the Rome Statute is still at its early stages and will require careful consideration and analysis. The Department of Foreign Affairs officials continue to engage in discussions on the important implications of this proposal with international partners, both within the EU and with other fellow States Parties to the Rome Statute.
As with all proposed amendments to the Rome Statute, it is for States Parties individually to assess the merits of the proposal in the first instance. If there is sufficient support among States Parties for an agreed definition of ecocide, a formal amendment can be considered by the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute. Any decision in relation to such a measure will be for those government departments with responsibility for environmental protection to take.
657. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Justice the number of short-term visa applications under the category of general practitioner relief and cover by the country of origin of the applications that his Department has received, approved, denied and is still processing in each of the years 2016 to 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form. [32766/22]
View answerThe Atypical Workers Scheme operated by my Department facilitates applications for short term work in the State by Locum General Practitioners.
The majority of Locum General Practitioners are South African nationals with the remainder being Canadian, American and Pakistani nationals.
As of 21 June 2022, there are currently a small number of Locum General Practitioners awaiting processing.
The table below sets out the information requested by the Deputy.
|
Year |
Approved |
Refused |
|
2016 |
132 |
N/A |
|
2017 |
158 |
N/A |
|
2018 |
149 |
N/A |
|
2019 |
137 |
N/A |
|
2020 |
60 |
N/A |
|
2021 |
72 |
5 |
|
2022 |
34* |
0 |
*Figure correct as of today, but may be subject to further verification.
