Questions

135. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth to set out the policy in her Department regarding the use of artificial intelligence; whether AI is used or permitted in drawing up policy documents, speeches, answers to parliamentary questions, press releases or for other official documents; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15614/26]

550. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth to obtain from the NCSE the names of the individual schools in County Louth that received notice from the NCSE (prior to the announcement by the Minister that the current review of SNA allocation is to be paused), informing them that they would lose SNAs in their mainstream classes in the next school year; the number of SNAs that were scheduled to be los…

551. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth to provide the number of SNAs currently in place supporting students in mainstream classes in each school in County Louth, as of 1 January 2026, on a school-by-school basis, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14663/26]

588. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she has any plans to review the requirement for newly qualified teachers to have completed the Droichead programme within three years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15076/26]

572. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of the serious accommodation problems at a Louth school (details supplied); the plans her Department has to address these issues; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9680/26]

498. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if he is aware of the school bus transport issue of a school (details supplied) in Dundalk and the apparent disadvantage for Irish-language schools of her Department’s strictly-applied rules on the minimum number required for school bus provision; if his Department plans to address this issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5864/26]

561. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of issues surrounding the progress of a school building project in Drogheda (details supplied); the status of the project; the timeline for delivery of the project; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6351/26]

461. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of the extensive population growth on the north side of Drogheda; if her Department has any plans to develop a new second-level school to address the needs of the area or to extend existing secondary schools in the area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [73533/25]

450. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth the details of the eligibility criteria for inclusion in the new DEIS Plus programme; if the principal criteria to be applied will be the Pobal Deprivation Index and other small area data sets; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71674/25]

451. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if a school (details supplied) will be included in the new DEIS Plus programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71675/25]

456. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her Department has received proposals from a school (details supplied) in County Louth proposing internal modifications to the proposed new buildings; if she is aware of the fact that the new school building has been in process for several years; if she will include the project in her Department’ Sectoral Plan under the revised NDP; and if she will ma…

499. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if the building unit in her Department will engage with Louth County Council in relation to a school build (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72345/25]

528. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth when the construction of a new school building project will commence (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72564/25]

385. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her attention has been drawn to an issue caused by the lack of a late application process for notifying the NCSE of a child’s requirement for a place in a special class or school, and that parents who were not aware of the notification process or had a children born after the 30 September deadline are being left without a way to enrol their child in s…

344. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of a school’s (details supplied) difficulties in securing an increase in its SNA allocation; the progress on this issue; the reason for the delay; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65187/25]

648. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if she is aware of the difficulties being experienced by already qualified teachers on supply panels (details supplied), who appear to be losing out to newly-qualified teachers for CID posts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57940/25]

401. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth for an update on a local school building project (details supplied); the reason for the ongoing delays in realising this project; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56983/25]

198. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth further to Parliamentary Question No. 272 of 25 September 2025, if she will provide the figures confirming the cost to date of the installation of solar panels under the solar for schools programme (schools PV programme) since the scheme was introduced in 2023; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53366/25]

272. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth the number of schools which have applied and been approved for the solar for schools programme since its inception; the cost to the Exchequer involved to date; if new school building designs now incorporate solar panels by default; the average wait time experienced by applicants from the installation of panels to connection to the grid, by year, in tabul…

283. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth to provide a timeline for the delivery of a statutory instrument (details supplied) relating to timebound provision, enabling eligible teachers who have qualified outside the Republic of Ireland to apply for registration and complete their induction requirement in the Republic of Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [49800/25]

961. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if funding is still available for the LMETB headquarters building in Drogheda to commence; the most recent estimated costing available for the project; when it will go to tender; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46541/25]

962. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth when her Department plans to directly pay the salaries of school caretakers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46546/25]

992. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her Department has any plans to review the pay, terms and conditions of bus transport escorts who are engaged by schools to assist and support pupils with additional needs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46804/25]

996. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth the reason no update has been made available for TDs and affected customers and families in relation to issues regarding the A1791 school transport route in County Louth; when the matter will be resolved; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46832/25]

54. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Education and Youth if her Department has plans to reform how teaching posts are allocated to schools; if she recognises that a system based on the previous year’s admissions cannot accurately reflect future demand; if a system could be put in place that uses confirmed admissions for the coming year as a more accurate measure for teaching post requirements; and if she will m…