Questions

229. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Education further to Parliamentary Question No. 375 of 4 March 2025, the status of the engagements undertaken with the school to date to progress the school’s development plan. [18230/25]

230. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Education if there is any assistance her Department can provide in securing an SNA post in a school with relevant qualifications. [18232/25]

231. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Education if she will contact Bus Éireann to deliver a options for students of a school (details supplied) in their new temporary location; if she will facilitate school transport options for students living in both the City West and Rathcoole who are attending the school given the nature of the temporary location; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18233/25]

232. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Education when a permanent school building will be delivered for a school (details supplied); the stage this process is in at the moment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18235/25]

233. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Education if a DEIS Band 1 school (details supplied) will lose its 10th teacher (details supplied; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18237/25]

234. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Education if her Department has assessed current school capacity in the East Wall and Sheriff Street area in anticipation of a significant rise in population due to the completion of large-scale housing developments; whether there are plans to expand existing schools or build new ones; if demographic modelling has been carried out to inform future educational infrastruct…

235. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Education if she will review the criteria for DEIS inclusion for schools that have seen a large increase in pupils due to the war in Ukraine and allow for these schools to access DEIS funding as a matter of urgency; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18257/25]

236. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Education her plans to provide additional school places commensurate with planned buildings and population expansion in the Balgriffin, Portmarnock, Baldoyle, Clongriffin and Belmayne areas. [18292/25]

237. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Education if she will provide a breakdown of how the 1,600 new special needs assistant posts for 2025 will be distributed across the country, and specifically how many will be allocated to schools in Dublin Bay north, given ongoing reports of unmet need in the area. [18327/25]

238. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Education whether she will commit to streamlining the NCSE review process for schools seeking additional special needs assistant support, in light of concerns that delays in decision making are impacting students with autism and complex needs; and if she will provide average processing times for such reviews in the past 12 months. [18328/25]

239. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will outline the steps her Department is taking to improve data collection and database construction in anticipation of the increased data processing capacity that artificial intelligence adoption entails; if she will outline the logic behind their approach; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18356/25]

240. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will identify any projects which the Department has underway with CeADAR, Ireland’s national centre for AI; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18373/25]

241. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will identify any projects which a body under the aegis of her Department has underway with CeADAR, Ireland’s national centre for AI; if she will send this question to the bodies for direct response; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18391/25]

242. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will specify the specific policy areas where the Department is examining future use of AI; if she will identify what entities the Department is working with, public or private, in relation to this examination; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18408/25]

243. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will identify any AI training offered to people working in the Department; the level of take-up; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18425/25]

244. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will detail how many physical letters the Minister’s offices and the customer service team in the Department received from the public in 2024; whether those letters are digitised; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18450/25]

245. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will detail how many emails the Minister’s offices and the customer service mailbox the Department received from the public in 2024; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18467/25]

246. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Education if she will detail whether any surveys have been carried out to estimate the amount of time taken up with administrative tasks where such time could be used more efficiently; if so, in which areas of the Department has this examination been carried out; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18484/25]

247. Deputy Brian Brennan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he intends to roll-out a capital and equipment grant for the arts, similar to the annual sports capital grants as recommended by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media report, The Development of Local and Community Arts - July 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1…

248. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media his progress to date in the Programme for Government commitment to “resource and implement the new EU online safety framework to protect vulnerable groups from online harm, and tackle disinformation”. [18283/25]

249. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he is aware of the ongoing shortage of pitch availability for sports clubs throughout Dublin Bay north, particularly in areas experiencing rapid population growth; if he will engage with local authorities to identify solutions and support the development of additional playing facilities; and if he will make a state…

250. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he will outline the steps his Department is taking to improve data collection and database construction in anticipation of the increased data processing capacity that artificial intelligence adoption entails; if he will outline the logic behind their approach; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18368/…

251. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he will identify any projects which the Department has underway with CeADAR, Ireland’s national centre for AI; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18385/25]

252. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he will identify any projects which a body under the aegis of his Department has underway with CeADAR, Ireland’s national centre for AI; if he will send this question to the bodies for direct response; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18403/25]

253. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media if he will specify the specific policy areas where the Department is examining future use of AI; if he will identify what entities the Department is working with, public or private, in relation to this examination; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18420/25]