I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 25 together Gabhaim buíochas le Teachta Daly. Deputy Timmins is on this question as well. The question refers to the collaboration between innovation hubs, industry and third level institutions. My Department has, I believe a strong economic focus; it should have and does have. I am committed to making sure this is an economic Ministry that drives the needs of industry and engages with industry, labour force planning and skills development and the critical role of research and development in driving that knowledge economy. We should be working very closely with industry and taking the lead from skills needs of the future. The national skills group is working on that and on understanding what the projected needs are while supporting and collaborating with industry. That collaboration between the tertiary system across all the different educational frameworks and enterprise is critical. I have underpinned that through a number of strategic engagements with enterprise agencies such as IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, with representative bodies such as IBEC, ISME and others, individual enterprises and multinationals and indeed many firms that are leading-edge in technology and research and who are active in Ireland, including in Deputy Daly's region. He will be familiar with them. Part of that is driven at a policy level through platforms, including the national skills council, which I mentioned; the regional skills forums, where we understand the current market needs and emerging needs of the labour force; real-time insights from partners working in sectors; and then programmes like Springboard+, Microcredentials and Microqualifications and Skills to Advance. These look at the skills needs and how industry and the education sector can work together and supply different course offerings that are tailored and flexible to the needs of the learner, particularly the working learner, who might take a full-time offering but will perhaps take a microcredit and plug one on top of the other to gain a further qualification. There is also the Research Ireland accelerating research to commercialisation, ARC, hubs programme, cofunded by Department and the Government with support from the EU. It aims to establish new models for regional innovation and entrepreneurial training. That looks to accelerate the transition to the market of research coming from a higher education institute. It is from the fab to the lab, as we say in the case of semiconductors; similarly, it applies to many other fields as well. That is so important because academics are often performing an outstanding piece of work but they may not be equipped to take it to the next level - to the market, and to commercialise it or even bring it to mass production to benefit many more people. I am engaging with the Deputy on the urology project he advocated for. It is a very interesting project. It is a good example of where we can take that industry collaboration and plug it into the research ecosystem. There is a synergy and it lifts all. I welcome it and I am quite keen to engage further on that one. There are many others, if we look at the ARC hub and for health and tech. I was at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, RCSI, yesterday. It has a collaboration with the ATU on health technology. It has also been working through that. There is a western regional skills forum that allows business in counties Galway, Mayo and Roscommon to assess and develop skills for their employees and work in partnership with them. On the technological universities more generally, one of their aims is to provide technical expertise rooted in the regions, working with and close to industry to allow that local and regional collaboration to progress. That is such an important project and I am very committed that. There are a number of initiatives I want to roll out further within the technological universities over the course of this year and subsequent years. There is a lot of work going on. A lot done, more to do.
Sentiment score: 0.27
Yes.
Sentiment score: 0.40
I thank both Deputies. I will respond to Deputy Daly on the urology project. It is a project I am very keen to explore further and there are already a number of projects like that we are developing in the regions. The New Frontiers programme in Castlebar and Galway has a start-up ecosystem working with ATU, and perhaps the urology project could be done along the same lines. On the supercomputer, I was very keen when I came into this Department that Ireland should remain at the leading edge of digital, quantum and artificial intelligence. That requires significant computing power. We need a supercomputer. All of the most advanced research activity generates huge datasets. Storage and computational power are needed to make sense of those and make discoveries. I initiated the process of procuring a new supercomputer that will be managed by the University of Galway. The Irish Centre for High-End Computing is already in the University of Galway. It is doing a tremendous job on that. In fact, the Galway-led bid we submitted to the European HPC facility came third out of 17. It was very highly ranked and strongly received. We are also pursuing an AI antenna, an artificial intelligence factory that plugs into Luxembourg and France and allows collaboration at an EU level in those areas. It is so important if we are to remain at the forefront. We are talking about digital technologies but there are also health informatics, digital public services and the power to assimilate and understand data for all kinds of modelling, such as climate and transport. Many areas of public need can now be met by that and require that power. I am keen that we remain at the forefront of that. Deputy Timmins is absolutely right about collaboration with industry and how we make sure that lands and succeeds. Some of the things I want to embed or offer as ancillary supports for postgraduate students include communications and enterprise modules. Start-ups and spin-outs should be encouraged as well. Yes, we want researchers publishing citations, papers and publications but we also want to see campus companies beginning to come out again, giving enterprise a lift. There are some collaborations; iBio in UL is one such collaboration with industry. I would like to develop more programmes that are copartnered.
Sentiment score: 0.27
I absolutely agree this is part of the response to the challenges posed by the changing trade and tariff situation. We are entering an age of deglobalisation. We also have many other factors to contend with. It is important we maintain that industrial base and that knowledge economy we fought so hard to develop over the past 30 or 40 years. The key to that is the knowledge economy and investment in research, innovation and education. In terms of stickiness, it is easier to move a factory offshore than it is to move a research hub because the deeper dive performed within the area, the harder it is to replicate it and move elsewhere. We need to continue and invest. That is why I am working with agencies like the IDA and Enterprise Ireland. In terms of mobile talent, talent is our greatest natural asset, and we have some wonderful talent on this island. It is my job to nurture, foster, support and grow that through investment in education and all that we are doing. I am mindful there are many who may be considering relocating from the United States perhaps, or other jurisdictions due to changing trends in their home states. I recently put out a global talent initiative, which is a call to invite researchers from outside of Ireland, including the United States, to consider relocating here. Those people typically come in two categories, naming rising stars, which are young people on the up and who have made a name for themselves but are still forging their path through academia, and established people, who have a very strong record. Both types bring excitement, energy and often funding with them and can contribute significantly to the development of a particular area. I am going to single out Professor J.C. Seamus Davis, an academic in quantum computing in University College Cork. I visited his lab recently. He works in partnership with Tyndall National Institute. He is doing amazing, world-leading research in semiconductors, which is a key part of the global supply chain and a key part of Irish industry. He came through initiatives such as that a number of years ago. One or two people can bring such a critical mass with them that they can develop an entirely new hub or an entirely new research programme or collaboration. I also intend to announce funding for a new research infrastructure programme in the next number of weeks which will set the foundation layer for equipment, laboratories, computing power and all the base layer that is required to build this because we need a solid foundation to let this work happen. It is critical to our economy and society that we should do so.
Sentiment score: 0.26
The 16 ETBs are the backbone of further education and training, FET, context in local communities. They were established under the Education and Training Board Act 2013 and are funded and overseen by SOLAS, the further education and training authority, which is funded by my Department. The ETBs play a critical role in supporting inclusion, community involvement, outreach, developing critical skills, and underpinning the workforce development and lifelong learning agenda as part of the wider tertiary system. Provision in the FET sector includes accredited programmes at levels 1 to 6 on the national framework of qualifications, NFQ, as well as unaccredited options. This ranges from foundational skills such as literacy and numeracy, entry-level type courses, through to bridging programmes such as Youthreach, an incredibly important programme, at levels 3 and 4 going on to levels 5 and 6, including post-leaving certificate courses which involve progression to employment or higher education. The tertiary degrees are a wonderful initiative where a student can commence learning at a local ETB or further education centre, take a level 5 or level 6 qualification and go on to attend university for a level 7 or level 8 qualification. It takes away the fear factor or confidence factor of making that leap. They can take a smaller step locally but can then progress to a third level qualification beyond that. Traineeships, apprenticeships and specific skills training focus on work-based learning and direct employment pathways through the ETBs. We have visited many local ETBs, as has Minister of State, Deputy Harkin. We have both gone around them over the past number of months and continue to be impressed by the work they do. They engage with the regional skills fora, with local employers and local industries, to ensure the needs of labour force is being met. ETBs also work with higher education institutions - the universities, the colleges, the technological universities - to create pathways from FET into higher education and qualifications beyond level 6. I mentioned the tertiary programmes where learners can start closer to home in a more comfortable, familiar setting without the attendant commuting, etc., and can progress to a third level institute beyond that.
Sentiment score: 0.31
I fully agree with Deputy Timmins. There are a couple of ways to look at this. The promotion of further education options and apprenticeships is really important. We have a job of work to do as a country and a society in persuading people of that and advocating for it. I make the argument every day that apprenticeships and further education in general should never be seen as second best or some kind of rung below. They are absolutely equal, exciting, tangible and can be a very rewarding pathway into a career as a first-choice option. That is a message we need to repeat. We must align our access to education through combined pathways and continue to promote that message through guidance counselling and all those areas. It is key we do that. I have visited a number of ETB schools, which have both second level and further education going on in the building. I was in Gorey Institute of Further Education recently and Mullingar Community College not so long ago and a number of what we call dual schools. They could do a body of work promoting options within them. Indeed, non-ETB schools could do the same. I am not going to trespass on Minister for Education and Youth, Deputy McEntee's area because second level education and guidance counselling, etc., comes under her remit, but that is something we would all be supportive of.
Sentiment score: 0.23
There is a lot there. If I do not get to it all in 60 seconds, I will come back to Deputy Timmins. ETBs provide a very valuable role across a number of areas and a number of goals. I never regard an educational course as a tick box. The pursuit of knowledge is a public good. Whether someone is in the labour force, is unemployed or has disabilities, it is always a benefit to the individual and to society if they progress their education to whatever extent, short or long. There are many different paths through it. We have early school leavers who avail of community training centres. There are specialist training providers in the system for people with disabilities. There are community education organisations. Some learners will progress a FET qualification. They can then be QQI awarded and given points for that, which they can then use to apply to the CAO directly, coming through what we call a QQI pathway rather than the traditional leaving certificate points system. There are also the tertiary courses I mentioned. There are a number of different options. There is everything from specialist industrial skills to people pursuing knowledge and hobbies and gaining confidence to come outside the home and pursue education. There is a range of different courses and objectives. I would consider them all of significant value.
Sentiment score: 0.23
That is not quite the question the Deputy asked but I will answer. The question she asked concerned the cost of third level fees. My Department provides significant funding for tuition fee supports for students every year, including funding under the free fees initiative, which are sometimes referred to as tuition fees. Every undergraduate student in the State, bar certain exceptions such as those studying a second time or international students, has their tuition fees paid in full by my Department. There are also things like the student grant scheme, Springboard and a student contribution fee, which is on top of the tuition fees which are paid in full. Despite being referred to as free fees, someone has to pay for them. The State pays for them, and is glad to do so. Last year, the cost was €628 million. The fee for the 2025-26 year is not yet known because we are still in it. It is expected to be of a similar magnitude. We arrived at that figure through a number of ways. The free fees initiative and tuition fees come to a cost of €380 million. The contribution fee was €147 million last year, when there was €1,000 to address the cost of living. The student contribution fees paid by SUSI come to €101 million. That adds up to €628 million. That is the figure the Deputy asked for in terms of cost. Sinn Féin's prebudget submission suggested that we cut the cost in years one and two by €1,500 and abolish fees in years three, four and five. That would cost about €1.6 billion. It is not clear whether the proposal extended to apprenticeships and postgraduate qualifications, etc. I would welcome clarification on that from the Deputy. What would we cut by €1.6 billion in order to do that? I would be interested in hearing the views of the Deputy on that. Perhaps I will come back to the other points in supplementary replies because the clock is ticking.
Sentiment score: 0.14
Everything comes out of people's pockets because State resources are taxpayers' money and we all have to have respect for and be judicious in how we spend them. I am always very careful how I spend taxpayers' money which comes out of their hard-earned pay packets. It is important that we do this in a way that is socially just, progressive and targeted, and gets the most support to those who need it the most. I hope the Deputy agrees with me on that because it is a fundamental principle. If she does not, I would be interested in knowing why. Third level education is my remit and the Minister, Deputy McEntee, and others can talk about the other systems. Spending €628 million on fees alone is a significant annual support. There are other initiatives. I cannot speak to previous budgets because I was not a Minister or part of those Governments, but cost-of-living supports were provided at difficult times through Ukraine, Covid and the cost-of-living crisis, and that made sense at the time. We are now into a different dynamic. I was keen to do something that was permanent, costed, sustainable and within the baseline of my Department. That means it is there to stay and the uncertainty and anxiety of will-they-won't-they every summer is gone. There is a €500 permanent cut there to stay.
Sentiment score: 0.08
Again, it is about choices. It is about managing with limited resources to provide the most support in a targeted and progressive way. I am confident that I have achieved that as best as I can this year with the resources available to me through a universal cut to the student contribution fee. I appreciate that it is more than students paid last year. I get that because they had a voucher last year which expired on 31 December and was not there this year. The budgetary situation meant that there was less money there to change that. I cannot cash in that voucher and neither can any student. I can give them something permanent that they can take this year, next year and every other year. We may well develop that further. That is the starting point for the first budget in the first term and I am proud to be able to deliver the first permanent cut in fees in 30 years. As well as that, and just as important, I have increased maintenance grants for all non-adjacent students for the first four bands and the special rates, which are bands one, two and three, which will make a significant difference to those families on lower incomes or at risk of poverty and target money towards those students. There is also money for students with mental health issues and disabilities. I have increased the threshold so that lower income households should not be paying fees at all and middle-income families will receive significant support, given the salary band below which students can receive supports is now €120,000.
Sentiment score: 0.23
This is something I am very aware of and very keen to make progress on. It is multi-faceted; it is not a one-size-fits-all solution. My immediate and short-term focus has been on enabling stalled projects to proceed by tackling the viability issues. The €100 million in the short-term activation programme has been put aside for this purpose. Under that programme, some beds are reserved for priority students under the national access plan at reduced rents on a 30% basis. Therefore, 30% of beds are ring-fenced for SUSI recipients for a period of 30 years. Measures like that are very important in any State-funded accommodation. As part of that programme, I approved funding of €67 million just last month to enable UCD to enter into contracts. Indeed, I turned the sod with President Orla Feely out there a few weeks ago. That will deliver 493 new student beds. I also opened Maynooth University's 116-bed project at the start of September in Teach Uí Bhuachalla, or Buckley House. We have other measures, including things like VAT. In the recent budget, we reduced VAT from 13.5% to 9% on new apartment construction. I engaged with the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, on that measure to ensure it will help to unlock up to 15,000 additional student beds that have planning permission but have not progressed. Some of that is because of viability and cost issues. In June, I published the Design Guide for State Sponsored Student Accommodation. That will support the optimisation of capacity in new developments and should also accelerate the delivery of that accommodation. I am working with the technological universities, TUs, through the technological sector student accommodation programme, which is an activation measure through which supports are provided to allow the TUs to develop their own accommodation and to support them in progressing that. I intend to publish the long-term student accommodation strategy, which is a work in progress at the moment, by the end of this year. It will include a range of measures across viability, affordability, increasing supply and maximising the amount of accommodation to make sure it is available to students. I am also working with the Minister, Deputy Browne, on the rent pressure zone legislation, which is expected to come through the House shortly to ensure it contains adequate protections for students.
Sentiment score: 0.22
That is very much the plan and what will be contained in the new strategy when we put all the bits of the jigsaw together and launch it. That will then guide everybody from local authorities to people in construction to the different higher education institutions to progress. The actions in the last plan have progressed. That is why the €100 million in the short-term activation fund is there. That is why I was able to turn the sod at UCD recently and why we were able to bring on stream the new beds in Maynooth. There are others within that programme that we expect to come good through that scheme in the new future, because it is important that we maximise the availability of accommodation. We have other measures and supports such as the rent tax credit. One of the reasons I increased maintenance grants for non-adjacent students in this year's budget was to reflect the reality that additional accommodation costs and indeed transport costs for those living a bit further way in a non-adjacent setting can be challenging.
Sentiment score: 0.27
I thank the Deputy. The first phase of the previous strategy set a target of 7,000 units and 8,000 were delivered, 1,000 above target. Of the second much more ambitious figure of 54,000 units, 49,000 were achieved, which is 91% of the target, at a time of Ukraine, Covid, Brexit and the supply chain crisis. That is a reasonably good foundation on which to build. I am not happy with service charges being levied on students and I have made that clear. I have written to some of the higher education institutions that were engaged in that practice to express my dissatisfaction and frustration. I have put a marker down that this should not be the case. We all have to find common cause on this and work together to maximise and optimise the supply of student accommodation. It is so important that we allow students to have a roof over their head and avoid commuting. I ask the Deputy to look at her own party. I have written to Deputy McDonald on this. Her own councillor, Ciarán Ó Meachair, is opposed to student accommodation. He put out a leaflet just last month about opposition to student accommodation developments. We cannot speak from both sides of our mouth. I have invited Deputy McDonald to clarify that issue. I have written to her but have not received a reply. I do not know if the Deputy expects her to address it today. The Deputy comes into the House and rightly says we need student accommodation - I agree with her - but she should tell Sinn Féin councillors to stop opposing and objecting to such accommodation.
Sentiment score: 0.03
I thank the Deputy. I am conscious of the cost pressures on students who must pay for student accommodation or those who commute. Some may decide to commute instead and that is equally arduous because of the costs and time associated with that. The grant scheme recognised this by increasing the amounts available this year for non-adjacent students. In recent times, the non-adjacency distance has also been reduced from 45 km to 30 km. That is a progressive move that will bring more people into the non-adjacent net and they can then receive additional supports as a result. SUSI calculates the distance by measuring the shortest, most direct route from the applicant's normal residence to the higher education institution. It uses Google Maps to do it and uses the time of 1 a.m. The reason it is done at night is that Google Maps, as we know, can direct us through all kinds of weird and wonderful routes, depending on traffic patterns or congestion at different times or accidents. The simplest way to get an as-the-crow-flies reading is to do a 1 a.m. calculation using Google Maps from the home to the college. That is how it is calculated. That method is universally applied across the board. I appreciate there are always going to be edge cases and hard cases but the method is applied equally and universally on the basis of fairness to all students. I have mentioned the additional increases in the maintenance grants for non-adjacent students and the fact the range was recently reduced to 30 km. I appreciate this is always going to be a challenge. It is one of the reasons we are pursuing the student accommodation strategy so vigorously. There have also been measures like the student Leap card discounts on public transport in recent years, which I also highly support.
Sentiment score: 0.15
The Deputy makes an interesting point. The income thresholds have increased this year to €120,000 so Members of the Oireachtas would qualify for SUSI support, which I think may be a first. It is at a significant level and it has certainly gone beyond those who may be at risk of poverty or are on lower incomes. They rightly receive more support but up to €120,000, families are now in receipt of SUSI supports, which is very progressive and is the highest it has ever been. Regarding regional balance, which I think the Deputy alluded to in his question on students who may be attending other institutions and may incur greater costs, one of the things I am exploring in this budget, and I have set aside some money for a pilot, is the cost of placements. This might include a Gaeltacht placement, for example, on some courses or placements in healthcare institutions, as well as equipment purchases if a student has to purchase laboratory equipment, a uniform or other items. I have commissioned a pilot and have committed moneys to it in the current year to see what exactly could be helped in that regard, what courses need what supports on a custom basis and how we can do something that is fair and uniform. We can then develop that further in subsequent budgets once we have teased that out.
Sentiment score: 0.27
The Deputy is right; the cost will increase. The non-adjacent grant is greater for that reason. A student will receive more significant support if they live farther away from the college and it begins to taper down the closer they live to the college to reflect the fact they may not require accommodation or that their transport costs may be less if they live adjacent to the college. All the non-adjacent bands increased this year for that reason, to reflect the reality that it is going to be more expensive if a student is required to travel to their institution. The Deputy has made good points and I am happy to take them on board. I will continue to do so as we consider all these measures.
Sentiment score: 0.43