We all know there have been major backlogs in the apprenticeship system. We all know of the necessity of apprenticeships across the board and particularly craft apprenticeships. It is not uncommon for apprentices to wait for up to 18 months to be called for the relevant phase of their off-the-job training, whether in a technical university, TU, or education and training board, ETB. There has been an enormous level of criticism of the Government for this particular issue. We have seen high dropout rates. The backlog…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. I welcome that information. We need to see this happen quicker and better. It is as simple as that. Some of the difficulty with the backlog and filling the spaces is that some of these qualified tradespeople can earn more on site than in the classroom. In its alternative budget, Sinn Féin set out €4.4 million in financial supports to incentivise those currently working on sites to undertake the necessary classroom teaching. What has the Minister of State considered to ensure we …

I ask the Minister of State to outline the funding that will go to each university for the delivery of student accommodation beds. Will he provide a timeline for when construction will begin? We all understand that the price of accommodation at third level is an enormous issue for students and, in many cases, for their families. A considerable number of people will miss out on their educational journeys on that basis. This issue needs to be dealt with.

The provision of student accommodation has become incredibly bad in the time of this Government and the previous one. The Minister of State outlined that it is proposed to spend €100 million on student accommodation over three years. He also outlined some of the measures that have been delivered. He referred to the fact that 30% of what will be delivered will be provided at below the market rate. I am interested in hearing how that determination has been made. The Minister of State gave a timeline for UCD, Maynooth…

I thank the Minister of State. I am well aware of the technological university sector. The Minister and I have spoken before about the fact that Dundalk Institute of Technology, DkIT, is not in that box at the moment, but we hope the relationship with Maynooth will be successfully concluded. Across the board, we must make sure that places like Dundalk and the other TUs will have the ability to provide necessary accommodation, and that money will be provided for that to be a sustainable option for TUs and universiti…

Could I ask the Minister of State about the changes to the SUSI thresholds, as per budget 2025? Could he provide an estimate for the additional number of students who will now qualify for the grant? That is the information we seek. We are all well aware that students are struggling with the cost of living and the cost of accommodation, as per the previous question. If more people can avail of SUSI grants, it will facilitate them to attend the college they want.

We all know from people who approach us in our offices, that some miss out on the basis of what are sometimes very small amounts. We are talking about people that do not necessarily earn spectacular amounts of money, and who are under severe pressure. It would make a great difference to increase the number of those availing of a SUSI grant, or to provide an increased level of grant. I welcome the fact that 3,000 to 4,000 more students will qualify. What we have to deal with is the overall cost. As I outlined, in so…

I welcome that information about those who will benefit. As I stated previously, there is a large number of people who still do not benefit and are under severe pressure. We have to deal with the whole issue right through from the cost of living to the huge cost of accommodation. At times some students are under pressure. The USI produced a survey showing that some students are having to skip meals. This is not anything that anybody in here wants to see. We need to make sure we have a system that does not leave kid…

To follow on from Deputy Durkan, I recently visited the Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre of Excellence, Dundalk. We have the robotics and automation apprenticeship which, obviously, is an absolute necessity. We know the idea behind cybersecurity. We have 3D concrete printing. There is also huge interaction between industry and the advanced manufacturing centre, which is followed up by the work that is done in the likes of the Ó Fiaich institute and the Drogheda Institute of Further Education, DIFE. We need to…

The election is on.

The Tánaiste confirmed to Newstalk that he felt a number of prosecutions in relation to the Dublin riots were not proceeding fast enough. What are the Minister's views on this?

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. If there are deficiencies, we all want them dealt with. We accept that major work is being done by gardaí and many others. To come back to where I began with this, I was struck by the Tánaiste's claim that the justice system is not functioning well enough. That is a strange statement, given his own role in facilitating Fine Gael's 13-year tenure in the justice Ministry, including the Minister's term of office. We have overcrowded prisons, delays in court and a crisis in the context of…

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. At the next opportunity, will answer my questions? We are worried about the possibility of overturning a number of convictions after the major work done by gardaí and many others. We all support providing the Garda with the capacity it needs. We need to see more of that happening and it needs to happen faster. We have said we need to ensure that even more non-core duties should be removed from the tasks gardaí are obliged to perform. We need to implement our housing plan and create a …

Recently we saw a ceremony for those people who have gained their citizenship. These are very happy occasions and I am sure they are one of the Minister's favourite engagements as Minister. The processing time, however, still seems to be touching upon two years for many and some applications even exceed that. We are talking here about people who are working and playing a huge role in our society. What can the Minister say to those who are waiting this long and who need and want to make life plans that centre on the…

I wish to refer to correspondence that came in to Deputy Pa Daly's office. It came from an Irishman who is married to a man who does not have Irish citizenship. His husband had exceeded the wait time considerably and he was in contact with a number of others who were in the same situation. Many people received emails from the Department of Justice stating that there was a delay but that the cases of people who applied in 2022 would be prioritised in chronological order during 2024. However, two days ago, thousands …

That is very positive, and it should be the aim. It is a matter of making sure it happens. Regarding workflows in the Department, there have been backlogs in respect of a number of immigration permissions. The Minister of State referred to citizenship applications and the processing of asylum applications. The numbers have risen in all these areas. I suppose only so much can be done at times, but we need to make sure that decisions are made much faster. There has been a great deal of commentary about the speeding u…

I am going to ask about the plans to deal with the scourge of drugs and drug dealing, and if the Minister could make a statement on the matter. On the television and on the beat, in any town or village across Ireland, everyone can see with their own eyes the issues that impact greatly. I am talking about everything from organised crime right down to the vulnerable people who are used, and their disorganised, chaotic lifestyle which impacts on the wider community. We need tools across the board for dealing with this…

I submitted another question which I thought might have been up for oral reply today. It must be in for written reply at this stage. It related to the number of gardaí across Louth and in Dundalk, with details of the numbers in drug squads. I will be looking for that. I agree with what the Minister has said. Obviously, considerable effort needs to be put in on major operations, both internationally and at a street level. I accept that nobody has policed this problem anywhere in the world. I imagine it would take so…

The Garda is spending a huge amount of time. Councils do not have the power and Tusla does not have the tools. The Garda does not have the tools at this point in time to deal with these sorts of issues.

It is a huge draw on resources.