I thank the Deputy for her question. At the outset, I want to challenge the characterisation of "unfit for purpose". That is a strong phrase and is not one that was reflected in the parliamentary question as tabled. I do not believe that is true or fair to the system. There have been backlogs. Those backlogs are being worked through, for sure.
For context, there has been a strong growth in demand for craft apprentic…
TDs / James Lawless
James Lawless
Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science
Portrait: © Houses of the Oireachtas (Oireachtas (Open Data) PSI Licence) · source file
30
questions asked
Oral and written, to government departments
114,588
words spoken in the chamber
114,547 as a minister, 41 as a TD
360
votes recorded
Each Yes, No or Abstained in a recorded vote
19
topics asked about
Across 11 departments
From the Dáil chamber only: committee meetings are not in this archive.
What they ask about
The subject headings the Oireachtas filed their questions under.
Who they ask
The departments their questions were addressed to.
Month by month
Low months are usually recesses, when the Dáil does not sit. The archive runs to 22 October 2026.
Questions asked 30 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Contributions to debates 440 in all
Dec 2024Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions | Contributions |
|---|---|---|
| December 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| January 2025 | 13 | 2 |
| February 2025 | 8 | 9 |
| March 2025 | 3 | 54 |
| April 2025 | 0 | 15 |
| May 2025 | 0 | 35 |
| June 2025 | 0 | 9 |
| July 2025 | 2 | 60 |
| August 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| October 2025 | 0 | 44 |
| November 2025 | 0 | 1 |
| December 2025 | 0 | 44 |
| January 2026 | 0 | 40 |
| February 2026 | 1 | 1 |
| March 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| April 2026 | 2 | 39 |
| May 2026 | 0 | 42 |
| June 2026 | 0 | 1 |
| July 2026 | 0 | 40 |
| August 2026 | 0 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 1 | 0 |
| October 2026 | 0 | 4 |
Debates they spoke in most
Plus 379 contributions in the regular slots, such as Leaders' Questions and Priority Questions. Speech from the chair is not counted.
Asked about similar topics
Not enough questions on record to compare.
Party, constituency and offices
- constituency Kildare North 29 November 2024 to now
- party Fianna Fáil 29 November 2024 to now
- office Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science 23 January 2025 to now
Let us consider the result of the measures I spoke about, the additional €67 million, the subsequent €77 million, the additional 110 instructors and the 80 instructors converted onto different types of contracts bringing an additional 190 instructors into the system. This has meant that craft training places have increased by 43%. That brought places from 5,600 at the end of 2023 when the backlog was identified to mo…
I thank the Deputy. A review is ongoing across the whole sector. There are many different types of apprenticeships now. There are the craft apprenticeships, which are related to construction skills, there are climate skills and apprenticeships for accounting technicians and digital marketing - and my Department has a number of staff working in that apprenticeship - so it is very much a broader and more diverse sector…
I believe there is another question.
I do not mind taking them separately either. I am in the hands of the Acting Chair.
I appreciate that.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 and 5 together.
The programme for Government does indeed commit to reducing the student contribution in a financially sustainable manner over the lifetime of the Government. As part of the cost-of-living packages over the last three budgets the student contribution was reduced by €1,000 per annum on a temporary basis at a net cost of circa €99 million per annum. These measures were…
Deputy Boyd Barrett asked about the temporary reduction. It was a temporary reduction; that is the point. It is important that we put it on a more sustainable, long-lived, permanent track, and that is part of the consultation I intend to hold with students, student bodies, stakeholders and universities to understand what would be a more holistic, sustainable formula to meet the cost of education for students and thei…
I thank the Deputies. Deputy Boyd Barrett should note that I am of course concerned about students dropping out. One or five is too many, never mind 5,000. I would like to understand the reasons. Some analysis would be helpful and I will look into this. I understand that meeting the cost of college has never been easy. I also understand that if the supports, which are abundant in the system and paid for by the State,…
The Cassells report was published a number of years ago and that was superseded by the Funding the Future framework. That was published in May 2022 and outlines the vision for how higher education will be funded and how this will support students, employees and wider society. The framework identified a figure of €307 million as representing the quantum of increase in core funding required to deliver enhanced performa…
On the Deputy's comment about the two other Ministers since, there have been three Ministers in the past five years since this Department was created. The Tánaiste served for four of those years, the then Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, served for six months and I have been here for two months. Give us a chance and let us see where we are. I will certainly make my best efforts, as the Deputy acknowledged.
The figure has…
The Deputy mentioned more funding does not necessarily lead to greater outcomes. That is why it is all the more important it is delivered in a strategic way and, as I said in my first response, the Funding the Future framework does have that at its core - to align funding with enhanced performance, strategic reforms and quality of outcomes. I agree with the Deputy and that is why we are doing it in a targeted, measur…
There was a pay agreement entered into between Government and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions last year and in the Revised Estimates, an amount of €24.9 million was provided in the base for the higher education sector in anticipation of that pay deal being agreed. That is a slightly separate track. I appreciate there are competing priorities, as always.
That highlights the difficulty of any report, be it Cassells…
I thank the Deputy for his kinds words to me and to the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin. We both look forward to serving this Department as a team and bettering the sector.
With regard to the Deputy's question, I am very interested in this area myself. I have made inquiries on it since I assumed the post. As the Deputy is probably aware, the HEA ran an expression of interest process in October 2022 to assess the ca…
I completely agree with the Deputy. My constituency is in neither catchment but is an agricultural constituency. It is an equine constituency. County Kildare is the home of the horses. I know many people who are interested in these courses and who tell me about the ongoing demand, the need for placements and the need for vets, including large animal vets. Small practice is its own area, of course, but we need people …
I am aware of the Deputy's interest, and indeed the interest of the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, in all items on the west coast, and this development no less.
I know the Deputy is well aware that Galway and Roscommon ETB is being supported by SOLAS in developing its preliminary business case proposal under the FET college of the future major projects fund. The proposal put forward by Galway and Roscommon ETB re…
For the record, as regards Galway and Roscommon ETB, I think €1.03 million in funding just in the current year is already earmarked, even aside from this project. I am aware, however, that there was a request for the square footage to be reduced. I think there was an application for 25,000 sq. m. The college was invited to submit a revised business case. There was a meeting with SOLAS and Department officials with al…
It would be unhelpful for me to comment on the particular facility in terms of the details of it because I am not informed on it. It would be unfair to the project. However, I take the Deputy's point that phase 2 will now follow and will undoubtedly provide important services. I think her suggestion is that it would be better to do the whole thing at once, if I understand her correctly. That is a natural, intuitive a…
The Deputy is being a little bit elastic in his supplementary question. A question on Galway and Roscommon ETB has morphed to include pharmaceutical course provision at the Waterford campus of SETU. I will run with it, however.
We are also on the theme of constructive collaboration. I do not know if the Deputy was in the Chamber for my interaction with Deputy Fitzmaurice but I fully agree with both Deputies. I am very keen to see these courses proceed. The provision on high-end professional qualifications in areas such as veterinary science and pharmaceuticals will be a hallmark of the technological universities. I am a big supporter of bot…
I thank the Deputy. She mentioned the audiovisual room presentations and so forth. As I have told the House this morning, I am a new Minister and am reading into the brief. If Members know of groups or interested parties who wish to engage with me, they should feel free to direct them my way. I cannot guarantee I will meet everybody every time but I will do my best to meet with stakeholder groups and take their point…
As does mine.
My daughter also commutes to college and I would prefer if she did not have to commute such a distance. I see at first hand that it can detract from quality of life. I have met student unions, most recently the union in Maynooth, and have heard that message conveyed. I completely get it and appreciate it.
On the framework being voluntary rather than mandatory, there is always a risk at a time when we are trying to i…
On ATU, I recently sanctioned the purchase of 16 acres by ATU Sligo. This is a site just opposite the college campus. The Deputy may be aware of it. That will come on stream in due course.
The Deputy is talking about Mayo. All politics is local. I understand that. I might have to come back to her on the details of the situation in Mayo.