Written Answers Nos. 183-192
183. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to provide an update on the addition of a bespoke seasonal employment permit scheme for foreign workers for fruit-picking and other seasonal employments in the horticulture sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45895/23]
View answerThe Review of Economic Migration Policy undertaken in 2018 concluded that while the employment permits system provides a robust framework to supplement skills and labour needs in the State, the current legislation imposes inflexibility in its operation. In order to increase the agility and responsiveness of the system, the Review recommended that new legislation be initiated.
The Employment Permits Bill sets out to consolidate the existing legislation to create a more accessible statutory basis and greater flexibility for our economic migration system. A key feature of the Bill is the proposed introduction of the Seasonal Employment Permit.
The 2018 Review found that there is a clear role for time limited work permissions for seasonal contracts for typically 6-9 months, and that there is a strong demand for such a permit type. To meet that demand, the Seasonal Employment Permit has been devised, to provide for non-EEA nationals to work in the State temporarily while retaining legal domicile in a third country, for the purposes of employment in a sector of seasonal activity.
In May 2023 Government gave approval for the Department to proceed with legal drafting of provisions for a Seasonal Employment Permit. It is planned that the Seasonal Employment Permit will initially be introduced on a pilot basis with a selection of companies in the horticultural (fruit and vegetable) sector.
It is intended that Dáil Report stage for the Employment Permits Bill 2022 will now be scheduled for the autumn, subject to the completion of the draft text of the remaining amendments. Depending on Oireachtas scheduling and whether any further amendments are proposed, it is expected that the legislative process will be completed, and the Bill passed before the end of the year.
184. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on continued trade with the state of Israel, following its breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46045/23]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, international trade is a competence vested in the European Commission under the EU Treaties whereby the Union's negotiating strength is as a bloc of 27 Member States representing some 450 million citizens. As such, actions, decisions and negotiations on trade policy are conducted by the Commission on behalf of the Member States through the European Council and the Council's Trade Policy Committee.
Ireland and Israel have no bilateral trade or investment agreements. Trade relations between the EU and Israel are governed by a Free Trade Agreement that is part of the 2000 EU-Israel Association Agreement whereby the EU and Israel have continuously worked on improving trade and economic relations.
In light of the issue of the EU's exclusive competence, in regards to trade policy, individual Member States cannot unilaterally adopt trade measures or trade restrictions against a third country as such action would be in breach of the European treaties and would only serve to undermine EU and Irish government efforts as regards the Middle East peace process.
185. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Education if any financial supports are available through her Department to facilitate the board of a school (details supplied) in purchasing off-road parking; if he is aware of the urgency of this matter, in light of a near-tragic incident occurring on the N56, with children crossing the road to attend the school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45886/23]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the school in question is located on a Patron owned site and in such instances property related issues, including acquisitions, are a matter for the Patron.
Individual school authorities are responsible, in the first instance, for ensuring the safety and welfare of children and others in their care.
The issue of road safety measures outside the vested site areas of schools on public roads, such as road signage, traffic calming measures etc., is a matter, for the relevant Local Authority. Local Authorities have the power to decide on road safety measures outside schools to ensure that measures are in place to protect the safety of local school children. My Department has no function in this matter.
186. Deputy James Lawless asked the Minister for Education if she will examine a matter (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45837/23]
View answerIn relation to school admissions, it is the responsibility of the managerial authorities of all schools to implement an admissions policy in accordance with the Education Act, 1998 and the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018. My Department's main responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in that area.
Parents have the right to choose which school to apply to and where the school has places available the pupil should be admitted. However, in schools where there are more applicants than places available, a selection process will be necessary. This selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. However, this may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice.
Where applications or expressions of interest were received by the school before 1 February 2020 and where a school had before 1 February 2020, confirmed in writing that the applicant had been placed on a list for the purposes of allocating school places in the year concerned, places on such waiting lists will remain valid if a school wishes to include the waiting list as a selection criterion for the 25/26 school year. However, such waiting lists will cease to exist on 31 January 2025. Any offers of admission made by a school after this date cannot use this existing waiting list as a selection criterion.
All schools must clearly set out their selection criteria in their admission policies. Schools have discretion in relation to their admission criteria and how they are applied. The criteria to be applied by schools and the order of priority are a matter for the schools themselves. My Department does not seek to intervene in the selection criterion that is applied by schools.
187. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Education if certain correspondence between her Department and an organisation (details supplied) have not put the funding for or the work by an educational charity in Cork city in jeopardy. [45838/23]
View answerThe centre in question is an alternative education setting and caters for young people who have encountered difficulties in mainstream education. It receives cooperation hours and non-pay funding from my Department.
The centre benefits from an allocation of 6,000 co-operation hours funded by my Department and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research Innovation and Science. This provides a considerable staffing allocation to the centre.
In addition in 2021 my Department increased the non-pay funding allocation to the centre by €100,000 which brings the annual non-pay funding from my Department to €177,500.
The correspondence referred to by the Deputy has not put either the cooperation hours or the non-pay funding provided by my Department in jeopardy. The centre will continue to be supported by my Department.
188. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Education if all steps will be taken within her remit to ensure that an educational charity (details supplied) secures a patron, and copper fastens the future of the educational charity in years to come. [45848/23]
View answerThe centre in question is an alternative education setting and caters for young people who have encountered difficulties in mainstream education. It receives cooperation hours and non-pay funding from my Department.
Officials from my Department are currently supporting the centre to identify a suitable arrangement with an existing patron body and will continue to do so until such an arrangement is secured.
189. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Education the timeline for when the promised modular building to accommodate the ASD unit at a school (details supplied) with be delivered and operational; the details of any engagement her Department has had with the property management company in this regard; the details of any engagement her Department has had with the school management and parent representatives with regard to the delay in delivering the promised modular building; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45849/23]
View answerI am pleased to advise the Deputy that approval under the Additional School Accommodation scheme issued to the school in question for the provision of a 1 x 100m2 SEN classroom.
Although this project is devolved for delivery to the school authority, the Department arranged a project manager under its procurement framework to assist the school authority in the delivery of its building project. This is designed to enable the accommodation to be provided as quickly as possible and help ease the administrative workload for school authorities in relation to the management and delivery of projects. The use of the Department’s Modular Accommodation Framework also assists in ensuring lead in periods for procurement of this modern method of construction are minimised to the greatest extent possible. To date, this has worked very well in the education sector and has seen delivery of large scale, high quality modular accommodation to meet the needs of children, particularly those with special educational needs.
However, the wider context in relation to the overall modular market at present is challenging with modular accommodation suppliers being very busy across commercial, housing and other sectors. The Department is working closely with the Project Management teams and the modular accommodation suppliers to ensure additional capacity for the schools sector is delivered as quickly as possible. The Department has been assured by the relevant project manager for the school in question that regular communication with the school authority is ongoing. Expected start date on-site for this project is 3-5 weeks.
The School Authority has devolved responsibility for delivery of this project.
190. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Education to examine an application for special education transport (details supplied). [45862/23]
View answerThe School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2022/2023 school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country.
In addition, school transport scheme services were provided for over 5,400 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine.
The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.
Already over 133,000 tickets have issued for the 2023/2024 school year which is an increase of 12% when compared with the start of the 2022/2023 school year. The number of tickets issued so far has already exceeded the total number of tickets issued in the 2022/23 school year.
The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school.
The National Council for Special Education acts in an advisory role to the Department of Education on the suitability of placements for children with special educational needs. Under the terms of the School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs, the Department will consider the report of the Special Education Needs Organiser (SENO). School transport is provided to children with special educational needs who are attending the nearest school to their place of residence that is or can be resourced to meet their educational needs, as identified by the SENO.
I am pleased to advise that the pupil referred to by the Deputy is eligible under the terms of the scheme and a sanction has been sent by School Transport Section of my Department to Bus Éireann for the establishment of a new service for pupils to the school referred to by the Deputy.
Bus Éireann have tendered this service in line with procurement guidelines and are in the process of allocating a contractor to operate this service, once a contractor has been sourced, the service will commence. Bus Éireann will liaise with the family directly.
Both the Department and Bus Éireann are very conscious of the challenges faced by parents awaiting transport for students with special educational needs. Families of children who are eligible for these services may therefore apply for the interim Special Transport Grant which is a once off payment, paid retrospectively to families once the School Transport service is in place and is to assist with the cost of private transport arrangements the family had put in place until services are finalised. The Family of the child referred have been contacted directly by School Transport Section of my Department, with an offer of the Special Transport Grant until the transport service commences.
191. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Education to review correspondence (details supplied); if she can indicate where these supports are locally in counties Cavan and Monaghan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45881/23]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that the NCSE has the responsibility for planning and coordinating school supports for children with special educational needs. It is a matter for schools to allocate supports as required, and on the basis of greatest level of need, which allows schools flexibility in how the supports provided to the school are utilised. Parents of children with special educational needs should discuss their child's individual needs with the school directly.
As previously advised, officials in my Department have commenced work in this area. Specifically, the group will be reviewing guidelines for teachers on students with exceptional abilities which were published in draft format in 2007 by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment. This review will take account of the significant reform measures which have been put in place in the Irish education system since 2007.
192. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Education the reason a person (details supplied) was not paid for the full forty hours of work they provided under the 2023 home based programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45908/23]
View answerDetails of this year’s Summer Programme were announced by the Department on 9 February 2023. Again, all schools were given an opportunity to run a programme for those children that need it the most.
The main priority in 2023 has been that those children with the most complex special educational needs, especially in special schools, should have access to a school-based summer programme.
The terms and conditions for the 2023 Summer Programme were implemented following a comprehensive review and extensive engagement with education partners and stakeholders, including the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Autism. The Department also engaged with management bodies, schools and parents with a view to encouraging more schools to participate in the 2023 programme.
The aim of the Department is to meet the needs of families and to ensure every eligible child is provided with a summer programme. The preferred approach is that the Summer Programme is provided for children in school settings where children may have access to fully qualified teachers, adapted fun based activity programmes, special needs assistants and interaction with student peers. The school-based programmes provide a more holistic experience for students and help retain the important connection with school and peers. However, the Department does recognise that not all schools would have been in a position to provide a school-based programme. In such instances, a Home-Based Programme is available for students with complex special educational needs where the school-based programme is unavailable.
It is important that the Home-Based element of the Summer Programme provides support for the education and/or care needs of students with complex special educational needs during the summer break period. Under the terms and conditions of the 2023 Home-Based Summer Programme, it is clear that the allocation of hours is 10 hours per week for a maximum 4 weeks for an eligible student. This is a long standing arrangement under this scheme and is designed to ensure that children can receive additional support over a prolonged period during the summer break. It is not intended to be given over a short time period or to replicate the school day, given that is generally on a one to one basis.
The Department of Education also makes it clear that the published terms and conditions of the Home-Based Summer Programme should be read carefully by parents and schools before making an application and should also be referred to throughout the duration of the programme by all, including teachers and SNAs. The terms and conditions also state that, in delivering the programme, teachers and SNAs must adhere to the published terms and conditions of the programme.
In the case referred to by the Deputy, this person was paid the full allotted hours for 2 of the weeks worked (i.e. 10 hours per week). This person was then paid for the hours worked in the other 2 weeks which fell below the allotted 10 hours.
