I hear what the Deputy is saying. Tertiary education is a great pathway. It is such an opportunity for students. It is not within the CAO system, so it allows students to access tertiary education. They can start in their local ETB and, if they like, progress on to further education in third level institutions. That is available to students across the country - in Offaly just as well as anywhere else. TUS and SETU are the Deputy's main partners in all of this. That is where the third level institutions are. Of all …

I thank Deputy Scanlon. He has made representation on this issue to me on many occasions. To provide the background to this, in February 2025, under section 8(1) of the Technological Universities Act 2018, the Minister, Deputy Lawless, approved Atlantic Technological University’s request to acquire a 16.35 acre site near its campus, to be funded from existing reserves. However, the HEA has since confirmed that the purchase did not proceed. I will come back to that in a moment. Both Deputy Scanlon and I are aware of…

I cannot disagree with anything the Deputy has said but I reiterate that in February 2025 the Minister granted ATU Sligo permission to proceed with the acquisition of that 16.35 acre site at Ardaghowen in County Sligo. The approval did not convey or imply approval for any proposed capital investment that ATU might be considering for the lands. ATU was directed to fund the cost of the acquisition from within its existing reserves. ATU Sligo did not progress with this site purchase. I know what the Deputy is saying a…

I appreciate Deputy Scanlon's considered and reasonable approach to this. I am just as familiar as he is with the history, what has happened and the fact that we had student accommodation that is no longer available to students. A lot of people are extremely concerned about that. What the Deputy has said underlines the urgency to move forward with whatever mechanism we have to provide student accommodation in the shortest possible timeframe. As I said, the Minister gave that permission to ATU but it did not proceed…

No.

No.

No.

I thank Deputy Scanlon for raising this important issue. I am responding on behalf of the Minister for Finance. The Deputy will be aware that capital gains tax, CGT, is a tax on the gain that arises on the disposal of an asset. The chargeable gain of an asset is the difference between the amount a person received for it - in other words, the sale price - the amount a person paid for it, the purchase price, and any allowable expenses in the meantime. Capital gains tax arises not just on the sale of an asset but also…

I thank the Deputy for bringing this issue to the House. The rate that capital gains tax is charged at has varied upwards and downwards. The truth is that the existence of capital gains tax can help maintain a balance between the rate of taxation of capital assets and the higher rate of income tax. It can also prevent tax planning behaviour. There are a number of targeted reliefs from capital gains tax, including principal private residence relief as well as retirement relief and revised entrepreneur relief. It is …

I thank Deputy Buckley for raising this very important issue. I have been asked to respond on behalf of my colleague the Minister of State, Deputy Dillon. Volunteerism has long been a defining feature of Irish industrial relations. It respects the autonomy of employers and workers, places a strong emphasis on dialogue and engagement and has served the State well over many decades. This model remains central to maintaining a stable and balanced industrial relations architecture. However, volunteerism also carries re…

I go back to what I said initially, which is that our system of industrial relations is built on volunteerism, which is a model that values engagement, respect and good faith over compulsion. It has delivered stability and progress precisely because it prioritises dialogue rather than conflict. As I said, however, volunteerism only works when all parties participate responsibly. The Labour Court plays a central and indispensable role within the system. While its recommendations in industrial relations disputes are …

The Minister for Health has asked me to thank the Deputy for raising this important matter and for the opportunity to update the House on it. He has outlined it very clearly. On behalf of the Minister, I fully acknowledge that waiting lists for primary care therapies, including occupational therapy, are far too long. She recognises that people waiting years to access these services is simply unacceptable. It is important to recognise that overall activity within the eight core primary care therapies is significant,…

Again, on behalf of the Minister for Health, I thank Deputy Ward for raising this important issue and the cases of the various people he spoke about. The Minister fully acknowledges that the increasing waiting times for primary care therapy services is a source of real concern for service users, their families and, indeed, the Minister herself. As outlined, a national initiative is under way to address long waiting times for primary care, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy and to re…

I thank Senator Clonan. There are a number of asks there. He is obviously talking about the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Calleary, but it seems that the Departments conferred on this Commencement matter and decided it fell within the remit of the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science places a high priority on inclusion across further and higher education. This work is closely aligned wi…

It says here that the suspension of disability allowance payments while on full-time FET is a fundamental element of the agreed national funding model. It goes on to say that it ensures consistency in payment structures across all ETBs and training providers, and that would include Cluain in Tipperary. I will certainly go to the Department, but it does seem that while what the Senator asks could be of benefit, maybe the impact of it on the systems that are already in place might be substantial. I cannot really answ…

I thank the Deputy for his question. The Government's commitment to expanding apprenticeship opportunities is delivering strong results. My Department secured €79 million additional investment through budget 2026, bringing the total investment for apprenticeships to over €410 million, more than double the level of 2020. This investment has supported significant growth with annual registrations rising by 78% from just over 5,000 in 2020 to well over 9,000 in 2025. The question relates to apprenticeship participation…

The new business and operations apprenticeship will open up new pathways, beginning with the Civil Service, as well as contributing towards the overall target of 12,500 new apprentice registrations. There are other relevant programmes, including paramedic, spatial planning and data analytics. Information on public service apprenticeship uptake is not available prior to 2022 so I do not have figures prior to that. Regarding the figures Deputy Kenny is looking for with regard to public service apprenticeship numbers,…

The point Deputy Kenny has made is very important. We have a number of programmes, especially in construction, and I will come back to the public service in a minute. One of our best programmes was a social media programme, Building Heroes, whereby 15 young men and women in the construction industry were involved in a social media campaign so that young people could see what it was like to be involved in these jobs. Yes, there are challenges with getting the messages out through schools but things are improving sig…

The Deputy did bring this to my attention previously. I assure him that there have been no cuts to GRETB's core funding allocation. My Department remains committed to supporting a further education and training, FET, system that enables individual success, supports economic growth and strengthens communities, underpinned by almost €1.1 billion in current funding for ETBs in 2026. In 2026, GRETB's core allocation is €65.7 million. That is an extra €4.3 million relative to what was delivered 2025. In fact, it is an i…

The point I made earlier is that there is no cut to the GRETB budget. In fact, it has significantly increased this year from last year. It is also important to say that while ESOL provision has reverted to pre-2022 levels before the Ukraine war, when it was significantly expanded on a temporary basis, ESOL continues to be delivered nationally as part of core funding. It is not that we have stopped it; it is just that we have gone back to the pre-2022 levels. Of course, ETBs have to manage within the budgets that ar…