Written Answers Nos. 65-71
65. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide an update on any alignments or mergers of higher education institutions which have taken place since he took office; and any which are proposed to take place in the future. [20497/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn May of last year, following consideration of a report from the HEA, I asked the Higher Education Authority to implement a future system configuration. My letter to the HEA and their report is published on http://www.education.ie/en/The-Education-System/Higher-Education/. It sets out all the proposed mergers and alignments. In summary, three groups of institutes of technology have expressed an interest to merge and apply to become technological universities. The three groups are:
1. Cork Institute of Technology; Institute of Technology Tralee
2. Waterford Institute of Technology; Institute of Technology Carlow
3. Dublin Institute of Technology; Institute of Technology Blanchardstown; Institute of Technology Tallaght
The three applicant groups are currently developing detailed plans towards merger. When these are complete they will submit them to the Higher Education Authority. Other mergers/alignments will arise from the Initial Teacher Education Review which recommended the creation of six centres of excellence in teacher education. The Froebel Institute has now been incorporated into NUI Maynooth. Significant progress has been made towards the other centres of excellence.
66. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will refrain from further increasing student contributions and fees in the higher and further education spheres. [20498/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will be aware, the Student Contribution stands at €2,500 for the current academic year and is payable by undergraduate students who qualify under my Department's free fees schemes. I have already signalled my intention to increase the Student Contribution by €250 each year hereafter until the 2015/16 academic year when the contribution will stand at €3,000. The Contribution is paid by the Exchequer in respect of students who qualify under my Department's Student Grant Scheme (some 40%).
Work is ongoing between my Department and the Higher Education Authority (HEA) on future funding policy for higher education.This builds upon the substantial amount of work already undertaken by the HEA. The objective is to identify a range of approaches that, combined, will achieve a sustainable funding base to address the continual expansion of the sector while protecting the quality of education.
The Deputy also refers to further education where Budget 2011 provided for the introduction of a €200 annual Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) programme participant contribution. This was introduced at the start of the 2011/2012 academic year and the same charge has applied each year since then. Full medical card holders (in their own right and their dependent children), those eligible under the student grant scheme and those in receipt of the Back to Education Allowance (BTEA) or Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS) allowances are exempt from paying the contribution. Decisions in relation to funding matters such as these are generally made as part of the annual Estimates process.
68. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding building plans in respect of a school (details supplied) in Dublin 3; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20505/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe major building project referred to is at an early stage of Architectural Planning. The Design Team are currently working on their stage 1 report for submission to my Department. Upon satisfactory completion of stage 1 and subject to no issues arising the project will be authorised to progress to Stage 2A, which is the developed sketch design stage.
Due to competing demands on the Department's capital budget imposed by the need to prioritise the limited funding available for the provision of additional school accommodation to meet increasing demographic requirements it was not possible to include this project in the 5 year construction programme announced in March 2012. School building projects, including the project referred to by the Deputy, which were previously initiated but not included in the current five year construction programme will continue to be progressed to final planning stages in anticipation of the possibility of further funds being available to the Department in the future.
69. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the percentage increase of international students in higher education and in English language schools since 2011. [20519/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Higher Education Authority's data, which are available at www.HEA.ie, indicate an almost 14% rise in full-time international student numbers between 2010/11 and 2012/13 in the institutions for which the HEA collects data. The figures for the English Language sector are estimates from Fáilte Ireland. The most recent relate to 2012, and they suggest a 28% increase between 2011 and 2012.
70. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of the 330,000 persons who did not have a leaving certificate or equivalent qualification in 2011 who have moved up one level on the national framework of qualifications, NFQ, as of 1 April 2014. [20520/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraInformation received from the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs states that in 2011, 19% of the labour force had qualifications at NFQ Levels 1-3, which is below leaving certificate level. I understand that in 2013, the latest available figures indicate that the number of those in the labour force with qualifications at NFQ Levels 1-3 stood at 15%.
71. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills the budget for training for employment allocated for each of the past five years. [20521/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe expenditure on training for the unemployed funded by my Department for each of the past five years is set out in the following table. It includes programmes delivered by FÁS/SOLAS, Department of Social Protection, Skillnets, the Labour Market Training Fund, Momentum, Springboard and the ICT Skills Conversion Programme.
|
Year |
€ |
|
2009 |
€266 million |
|
2010 |
€298 million |
|
2011 |
€284 million |
|
2012 |
€288 million |
|
2013 |
€290 million |
