Shane Curley
Cultural and Educational Panel · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“I congratulate the Acting Leader in his role as Whip. I wish Galway the very best of luck in the All-Ireland hurling final. I know everyone in the room agrees it would be great to see Liam MacCarthy go west. Best of luck to Micheál Donoghue and the lads on Sunday. We will all be there shouting them on, if we can get a ticket.”
“There are modules in special educational needs in the PME, but there is no mandatory follow-up after that. As we all know, special educational needs involve ongoing upskilling and awareness and we are constantly figuring out more about them. We will never have enough knowledge and will be researching it for eternity.”
“In some cases, teachers have to travel many kilometres to the nearest training day. It does not make any sense. I would welcome a debate in the House with the Minister on instructing Oide or some other body to carry out regular mandatory training in special educational needs for all teachers.”
“I would also like to welcome former Senator Ned O'Sullivan who I see in the Gallery as well. He is very welcome. Tá fáilte roimhe. It is high time, in the next few months if at all possible; this side of Christmas in particular, to have a debate in the House with the Minister to urgently address the issue of extra time in exams for studen…”
“CGMs allow patients and clinicians to monitor glucose levels in real time, improving diabetes management and giving many patients greater confidence in managing their condition.”
“In Ireland, you get ten minutes even if the exam lasts three hours and 40 minutes in the case of the likes of English paper 2. In third level in Ireland, the lecturers who are currently carrying out a review on the process that was undertaken by the SEC give ten minutes per hour of an exam to their students.”
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“In 1966 Donagh O’Malley made a revolutionary decision to provide free second level education for every student in the country. In 2026, on the 60th anniversary, it would be a brilliant message to send out that we have heard the needs of those with dyslexia and dyscalculia. We have heard the experts and reviews from so many third level researchers across the globe who have recommended this in exam systems. I am asking the Minister to be revolutionary for the leaving certificate students in 2026 and to roll this out so that every student gets the time they need to sit down, process information properly and to give a reasoned, measured answer based on having enough time to actually think about it because time pressure solves nothing. In my opinion, as a former teacher, it is so pointless.”
“We asked him if we could get a commitment that every student with dyslexia or dyscalculia in the 2026 exams would have extra time. He answered myself and Senator Crowe by saying: The key point is that this will be concluded and communicated in order that it will be in place for the examinations in 2026. We are at an advanced stage. The work is largely done. Let us finish it off. We need to come good on that. That was received so well by Dyslexia Ireland and by so many students with dyslexia around the country. They are so stressed about going into an exam they know was set up to make them fail. That was such a relief to them. If the Government has already sent out the message it is going to happen, we have to stick to that and make sure we come good on that.”
“Inevitably, it will be carried out by third level researchers. These are people who, when they set exams for their third level students, give them ten minutes per hour or part of an hour in an exam. From an accountability point of view, and from the point of view of value for taxpayer money, this is just putting that out to review to tell us what we already know. The dogs on the street know these students just need extra time in an awful lot of cases. It will be a complete waste of money if we go down that route. I am urging the Minister to rein in the SEC a little on this and make sure it is accountable for its actions. I mentioned this to the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, earlier and will quote the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, when he was in the Seanad earlier in the year.”
“I know the Minister mentioned that we are ahead of other countries on certain issues with regard to the accommodations we provide but if we take Italy, Norway, France, Netherlands, Finland, the UK and a whole host of other European countries, they average somewhere between 13% and 33% extra time for students in exams based on their dyslexia. We are a laggard in that regard. We do not give any extra time to every student with dyslexia. When I asked the SEC at the committee, it said it did not know if every student with dyslexia in 2026 would be provided with the opportunity to have extra time. They may not need it but it will be there if they do if this is rolled out. It is something that would be really beneficial. On the review that will be set up, I asked the SEC and it said it would cost money and would be sent out to tender.”
“As a secondary school teacher, I always tried to reassure my students as they went into their terminal exams riddled with stress and anxiety that the leaving certificate is a test of what they know and not of what they do not know. If that is the case and it is something we are trying to promote as an adage, why does the leaving certificate set students with dyslexia and dyscalculia up to fail and why is it still failing our students? In my opinion a pilot programme is a complete cop-out by the SEC. It is not rolling it out aggressively across the board as recommended by the advisory group that was set up in 2009.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. I thank the Minister for coming in this evening. I want to acknowledge that since the review committee made a recommendation on this in 2009, Deputy McEntee is the eighth Minister for education. Therefore, it is not as if she caused the problem; she just inherited it. Like Senator Scahill, I acknowledge that she is not the first Minister to have this on their desk. I also acknowledge that the Government supports the motion. I just want to bring a focus to one aspect of the motion, where it calls for the Minister for education to "ensure that extra time will be available for all students with dyslexia and dyscalculia sitting State Examinations in 2026". We need to come good on this expert recommendation in the 2026 exams.”
“Let us finish it off." That is a direct quote from the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, a couple of months ago in this Chamber. I believe he said it in good faith and was acting on behalf of the Minister, Deputy McEntee, in good faith, but it is something we have to come good on now. This relieved so much stress for students at the time when they got this news. There was huge celebration from people with dyslexia that current students about to hit the 2026 leaving certificate would not face the same trauma as previous students throughout the years. I am urging the Minister of State to intervene and ensure that the State Examinations Commission has this in place for the 2026 leaving certificate so we are no longer letting down the students of this country.”
“On that recommendation, the people who the SEC are about to pilot and send out for review will be third level researchers; it already gives ten minutes per hour or part of an hour as part of an exam, something I have repeated ad nauseam in this Chamber and in committee. I am not sure if the Minister of State is aware, but the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, the Minister, Deputy McEntee's Cabinet colleague, gave us a confirmation in very good faith a few weeks ago that this would be sorted for the 2026 leaving certificate. He said, "The key point is that this will be concluded and communicated in order that it will be in place for the ... [2026 leaving cert exams]. We are at an advanced stage. The work is largely done.”
“I will save my comments about the SEC's handling of the Irish language, but I will say that the less people who speak Irish, the harder it will be to reach our 2030 goals of having 20% of civil servants able to speak the Irish language. That can restrict the number of gardaí and other public servants we can hire in this country. In that 2021 study, Dyslexia Ireland found that 98% of respondents felt that people with dyslexia often have hidden potential. The whole country is counting on the SEC to help students to discover that hidden potential by providing academically recommended extra time for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia.”
“The report I mentioned from Dyslexia Ireland, conducted in 2021, of 761 parents, said 96% of parents agree that having dyslexia can have a negative impact on a person's mental health, particularly if it is undiagnosed and unsupported. Self-esteem, anxiety and mental health was the highest-rated challenge noted by respondents to this survey, at 69%, with about the same percentage of parents reportedly anxious about their child's future and work prospects. This is so prevalent that Dyslexia Ireland lists a lack of self-confidence and poorer self-image as one of the many indicators of dyslexia for students aged 12 years or older. As regards employability, research has shown that educational attainment increases the chances of legitimate work, and employees across this island help our society function at its best.”
“That is a quote from the SEC. It shows that body is slightly out of touch with what the experience really is for students on the ground. We all remember the stress of State exams and, indeed, any other exams we have taken throughout our lives. However, it is unreasonable to think students with dyslexia are not suffering from additional stress, trying to complete exams under conditions that have no accommodations for their needs. The stress of feeling punished for having dyslexia, something completely out of their control, is not normal exam stress. It is something more and it is hugely damaging to their confidence and self-esteem as well as not allowing them to reach their full potential. This goes on to have a wider societal impact.”
“[...] It is very disheartening [when you] put in all of the effort and done all the study and then you cannot show what you have learned. When asked, she said she could not finish a single exam in its entirety. She is a really intelligent young person who did not finish a single one of her junior certificate exams. Sive explained that research from other countries indicates that students perform better and experience less stress when given reasonable accommodations such as extra time. Sive said, "students [sitting exams] in other countries who did receive extra time had better results, [had] better well-being and were properly accommodated so they could achieve their fullest potential." In response to hearing Sive had not finished any of her exams, the CEO of the SEC said, "examinations are ... inherently stressful".”
“If extra time evidently helps level the playing field in other countries, why are we so far behind the curve? The public are really engaged on this and 33,000 of people recently signed Dyslexia Ireland's petition to roll this out for the 2026 exams. A few weeks ago, we had Sive O'Brien, a senior cycle student from Our Lady's Bower in Athlone, at the education committee. Sive, who is preparing for her leaving certificate, spoke candidly about her experience sitting the junior certificate without extra time and reflected on the toll it took on her confidence and well-being. Speaking to committee members, Sive said: It was a very stressful time especially when I went in knowing I would run out of time. My first exam was English and I badly ran out of time in that exam. That had a knock-on effect for all of my other exams.”
“Across Europe, extra time for students with dyslexia varies from 11% to 33%. Italy, Norway, France, the Netherlands, Finland and the UK all show up for their dyslexic students, leaving Ireland in the dust. In other countries, time is a tool to level the playing field. In Ireland, time, or a lack thereof, sets students up to fail. Carmen Vidal Rodeiro is a senior research officer at Cambridge University Press and Assessment. In 2022, she conducted a study on this very topic of controversy around the practice of providing accommodations in her paper titled Equal Opportunity or Unfair Advantage. The results revealed that students with accommodations performed similarly or slightly worse than students without accommodations, suggesting that in most cases the accommodations worked as intended and helped to level the playing field.”
“The SEC does provide some accommodations for students with dyslexia, including grammar waivers, scribes and assistive technology. This is all welcome, however, dyslexia can also affect processing speed. In a Dyslexia Ireland survey of 2021, 84% of respondents said they wanted extra time to be available to students with dyslexia in exams. However, the SEC does not grant additional time in its own right, but only as a consequence of other arrangements when someone qualifies for the RACE scheme. One year after their leaving certificate, should a student decide to go to college, they will get extra time in their exams if they have dyslexia. Not only is there a difference between second level and third level handling of extra time, there is also a significant difference between Ireland and the rest of the European Union.”
“In 2022, the Minister, Deputy McEntee, noted that dyslexia was one of the roadblocks preventing gardaí from fulfilling Irish language requirements. The impacts that start small grow until they touch all parts of Irish society. I will now provide background on dyscalculia. It is a learning difference that can cause difficulties with core maths, causing a lack of intuitive grasp of number-sense. A lack of confidence in their own math abilities can worsen what students already struggle with. Like dyslexia, it occurs on a spectrum, with some people mildly affected and others more severely. It affects approximately 6% to 8% of the population and there is a high rate of co-diagnosis of dyslexia and dyscalculia, leading to more challenges for those students.”
“The closing date for schools to send applications to the State Examinations Commission, SEC, is 21 November, with decisions returning to schools before the end of February. I will provide a quick background to dyslexia. As a teacher, I have seen how problems can compound this issue. A student may have a reading difficulty, then cannot finish the homework for the next day and then loses their confidence in a subject they once loved, particularly for me with the Irish language, simply because they were born with dyslexia or dyscalculia. Secondary consequences include reading comprehension problems and reduced reading and writing experience, impeding growth in language, knowledge and expression and overall academic achievement. These can go on to affect psychological well-being and employment opportunities.”
“Extra time for students with dyslexia or dyscalculia has been an issue forever but, in particular, since 2009 when an expert advisory group advised that it should be rolled out across the board for exams at leaving certificate and junior certificate level in Ireland. I thank my party for giving me the opportunity to bring forward this urgent Private Members' business today. I particularly thank my colleague, Senator Ollie Crowe, who has been working hard behind the scenes with me on this issue and I know he cares deeply about this as well. This debate is particularly timely as forms for reactivating accommodations that were already provided at junior certificate level and forms for new applications became available last month.”
“I move: That Seanad Éireann: recognises that: - 15,000 special education teachers have been provided to enable students with learning difficulties, including dyslexia, to attend their local mainstream schools; - the majority of students with dyslexia and dyscalculia attend mainstream schools; - schools receive a substantial additional teaching allocation to support children with special education needs who are in mainstream classes; - the National Educational Psychological Service provides professional learning opportunities to all post primary school teachers on supporting young people with literacy difficulties, including dyslexia; agrees that: - education is the great leveller and the great enabler, the bedrock of our country’s continued social and economic progress; - education is at the heart of all of our ambitions as a country; - our education system must support and nurture every student to reach their full potential; notes that: - the State Examinations Commission is reviewing the Reasonable Accommodations at the Certificate Examinations or RACE scheme to ensure extra time will be in place for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia sitting their Junior and Leaving Certificate exams in June 2026; - the State Examinations Commission is independent from the Department of Education and Youth; - the State Examinations Commission has asked students with dyslexia and dyscalculia to come forward so that it can set specific criteria for them, including extra time, for the exams in June; - primary legislation cannot be used to introduce the extra time; calls for the Minister for Education and Youth to: - update the House on the progress of the review of the RACE scheme in relation to extra time for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia sitting Junior and Leaving Certificate exams; - update the House on the engagement between the State Examinations Commission and students with dyslexia and dyscalculia; - ensure that extra time will be available for all students with dyslexia and dyscalculia sitting State Examinations in 2026; - continue to develop supports for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia; - continue to work to ensure our education system is fully inclusive of all students.”
“I had not even indicated to speak. I will say to Billy's family, as a young person who has friends who worked for Billy in Chicago on J1 visas, I pay tribute to someone who advocated so strongly for the undocumented Irish. I only met Billy once when I canvassed for Senator Crowe for the 2020 general election. He was a very accommodating man. He was a very nice man at the door, which was the only time I ever got to meet Billy in person. I wanted to pay tribute to him. I had not even indicated to speak. I did not really know Billy very well personally, but he did a huge amount of work for the undocumented Irish. That needs to be remembered. Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. Ceapaim go bhfuil sé ag fanacht le haghaidh an Seanadóir Joe Flaherty. The Minister of State, Deputy Richmond is continuing for the third and fourth Commencement matters.”
“I am sorry; this is not the Minister of State's fault but this is becoming so frustrating and it is just not good enough anymore. We cannot accept this. For people of the country, as TDs and Senators, we are supposed to make sure the best outcomes happen in the education system for students. This is just not good enough and I am sorry, I just cannot accept that response.”
“It is saying it is in line with best practice to roll it out on a pilot project basis and try to control the lack of a big bang at the end. Let us listen to Dr. Colman Noctor, a child psychologist. Let us listen to Dr. Keith Murphy in TU Dublin. Let us listen to the experts who are telling us it is not best practice to put students under time pressure in exams. Take Irish, for example. Some 14% of students are asking for exemptions. One of the main reasons is they feel under pressure to spit stuff out on paper under massive time pressure in an exam and it is just not good enough anymore. In 2009, an expert advisory group told the SEC to immediately roll it out nationally. In 2026, we are looking at what is in line with best practice to try to make sure there are appropriate conditions for eligibility. Give them the extra time.”
“I thank the Minister of State. I have to be brutally honest. As a language teacher myself, that is not a good enough response. It is coming from the SEC. I know it is not the Minister who is directly responding there - she has to liaise with the SEC to be able to respond - but that is not a good enough response and it lets students down massively in this country. It is becoming increasingly frustrating to have to deal with the SEC when it is basically digging its heels in. It might as well be honest and say that it is worried that if it increases exam time for all students across the board with dyslexia and dyscalculia, it may disadvantage other students. It is worried about the overall integrity of the exams. That is the basic honesty of this.”
“It is not her fault but I really need her to intervene right now and tell the SEC to do what it should have done years ago, which is to roll it out nationally in 2026 and give students extra time. One final thing: it will not cost a cent - not a single cent - to the State to give them extra time in exams and I think it is a no-brainer.”
“In 17 years since the first expert advisory group told it to immediately roll it out nationally, it has not. It may roll it out on a pilot project basis in 2026. It does not get the lasting damage this does to students. It does not get the fact that it is creating a self-image of failure and inferiority when we set students up to fail. They cannot process the information in time to get their answers out on paper and it is causing them severe anxiety and dismay when they fail their exams through no fault of their own because of the system that is set up to make them fail. We do not need expensive pilot programmes or reviews. We need extra time right now for students in the 2026 leaving certificate. I know the Minister, Deputy McEntee, is not here today. She is the eighth senior Minister who has had this on their table.”
“Basically, the State Examinations Commission, SEC, is about to engage in a review project of the pilot scheme that is going to be potentially done in the 2026 leaving certificate, if it continues as it says it has and goes ahead with what it is planning to do. However, the third level researchers who will review it are already implementing extra time when they give their students exams. It is ten minutes per hour or part of an hour of an exam. That is the norm at third level where we are going to ask them to review what is happening at second level and I do not think that makes sense. From the State Examinations Commission itself, we had Ms Feeney in. In that joint Oireachtas committee, she claimed that significant progress, in her words, and significant change has happened.”
“Sive outlined the fact that, despite being an incredibly intelligent student and having the ability to answer the questions in exams, she did not finish one of her junior certificate exams. Students study 12, 13 or 14 subjects to exam for the junior certificate. She did not finish one of them. Dyslexia Ireland has consistently called for a national roll-out of this. I raised this in the Oireachtas committee. I put it out on my social media channels and the feedback I got was absolutely overwhelming, from both the students themselves and their parents. I have been stopped on the street to be thanked for raising this on behalf of students to try to get the right thing done. This is the right thing to do for the 2026 leaving certificate across the board nationally. It is already the norm at third level.”
“I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, for being back in the House again. We have discussed this previously in the Seanad. As we head into mock exam season, there is an urgent need for clarity and certainty for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia in the 2026 leaving certificate. A 2009 expert advisory group recommended immediate roll-out of extra time in exams in the leaving certificate for students with dyslexia and dyscalculia. More recently, Dr. Keith Murphy, from TU Dublin, and child psychologist Dr. Colman Noctor have echoed those requests, 17 years later. We have seen no major progress. The impact is heartbreaking in a lot of cases. A few weeks ago, at a meeting of the Oireachtas joint committee on education, we had before us Sive O'Brien, who is a senior cycle student in the Bower, in Athlone.”
“Germany invests €250,000 in its team, Australia the equivalent of €300,000, and France €1 million. Ireland is stuck on a budget of €45,000 on an annual basis. Therefore, I urge the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment to, one, provide the funding for the rental of venues or support host shops with electricity credits or something to that effect, and two, recognise the value these butchers bring to Ireland's reputation around the world and to our economy, and to invest more heavily in the competition itself for the participants. As an infamous Waterford butcher said, the small corner shop is the heart of the Irish community, so let us support our butchers who are the fabric of Irish life and give Team Ireland the backing they deserve to shine on the world stage.”
“By way of background, the number of butcher shops has declined by 65% over 30 years and only about 500 independent shops remain, which is a concerning statistic. The Irish team that competes in the butchers' challenge championship trains most weekends in James Murphy's butcher shop in Carlow completely for free. He has offered them the venue completely for free to allow them to train. They urgently need a venue in the midlands but costs are prohibitive. It cannot be a situation that someone from north-west Donegal travels to Carlow every weekend to train if they get picked for the Ireland team, and that is a logistical challenge we need to discuss. For context, the Irish team operates on roughly a sixth of the average budget of other nations.”
“I want to raise the issue of vital funding to support Team Ireland in the World Butchers' Challenge, a global stage where butchers showcase excellence, creativity and community spirit. It is a thrilling three-hour competition where butchers push the boundaries of craft and innovation. The competition fosters international collaboration, business opportunities and elevates the butcher profession. The Associated Craft Butchers of Ireland, ACBI, craft butchery apprenticeship, which was established in 2016 is a QQI level 5 two-year programme. It is 86% on-the-job training and 14% classroom training, which is a really good blend that brings real-life experience to the fore. The apprenticeship is helping reverse the decline in the butcher education and skills situation in this country.”
“If he could leave one legacy in the lifetime of this Government, it would be that we radically overhaul the speed at which decisions are made in the education system. The time allocated for dyslexia in exams is a symptom of a broader issue due to constant delays in the decision-making process. I hope we can work together to improve that in the coming years.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Taoiseach as an ról a thug sé dom bheith mar urlabhraí ar an nGaeilge sa Seanad. I am really proud that the Taoiseach nominated me to be our party spokesperson on education in this Seanad. Donogh O'Malley's revolutionary decision to allow free second level education in 1966 opened up the doors for my parents to go to secondary school in Loughrea. In his tenure as Minister for education, the Taoiseach radically revised the primary school curriculum. That had a hugely positive impact on my young life. We are, proudly, the party of education. I hope we always will be. Senator Crowe and I spoke to the Taoiseach last night. We are currently working on an issue relating to dyslexia.”
“That is regrettable, but rail could play a huge part in upping our tourism output in Galway East and for everybody else in the north west. Not only that, it could have other benefits such as decarbonisation and reduction of our vulnerability to fines of up to €26 billion by 2030 if we do not cut down our carbon emissions. Rail takes a huge amount of cars off the road. People trust rail because it is usually on time, there are rarely delays, it is a safe mode of transport, and it gets you to and from the place comfortably. I look forward to working with the Minister of State in the years to come. I hope we can see rail going through Tuam and up into Mayo, Sligo, Donegal and up to Derry as the years go on.”
“One councillor contacted me in relation to a feasibility study which, it was suggested, could be funded by the shared island unit because of the cross-Border element of it. Where does that stand? Has there been talk about it in the Department as regards funding the Letterkenny to Derry feasibility study through the shared island unit? There is an argument to be made that an ambitious expansion of rail would open up huge tourism opportunities, both to Galway East and from Galway East up to the north west. Connecting large urban centres, such as Sligo, up through Donegal county and all the way up to Derry would provide such opportunities both to and from our constituency at a time when the midlands-north-west has been designated as a European Union region in decline.”
“It would be hugely beneficial. I have been contacted by councillors in Galway, Mayo and Sligo who have serious concerns regarding the extension which would connect Galway and Sligo, two of the biggest urban centres in Connacht. That is hugely important. Will there be a commitment to see this vital piece of rail connectivity realised? I have also been contacted in relation to Donegal by a lot of councillors up there. Some simply want the north west to be included in genuine expansion plans. Some want to ensure that the county of Donegal sees rail connectivity to both Sligo and the North, up to Derry. Some are concerned that Letterkenny to Derry is the only consideration and that towns such as Buncrana are also hugely important in considerations.”
“One of the first things that I have been asked to raise tonight by an awful lot of people in the west of Ireland, particularly in our own constituency of Galway East, is a timeline for the Athenry to Claremorris phase of the development and when we may see boots on the ground, the sod being turned and development. As well as that, there is a small point. When we did the county development plan in Galway in 2022 when I was a county councillor, I got a nice little line inserted into the county development plan that plans would be put in place for Loughrea to be reconnected to the Galway-Dublin line. There was strategy behind that. There is a huge benefit to having people from as far south as Nenagh connected by rail as they go north to Loughrea to take the traffic bedlam that is Bóthar na dTreabh and reduce the number of cars on it.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit as ucht a bheith anseo anocht. On a light note, because I am going to focus on the infrastructural side of things, I concur with Senator Cosgrove, who mentioned the song, "The West's Awake". When it comes to getting caffeine on the Dublin-Galway train on the way home on a Friday evening, the west is definitely asleep because we cannot get a cup of coffee and a Dairy Milk. It used to be lovely when I was coming home from college in the 2010s but it is a pity that is gone. It is back on the Dublin-Cork train, so what is wrong with the west? Let them give us back our trolley and the cup of tea. Anyway, that is on a lighter note.”
“The Minister of State, Deputy Canney, will speak first for ten minutes and then we will have the group spokespersons for seven minutes each. All other Senators will have four minutes each. The Minister of State can then reply not later than 5.50 p.m. The statements will conclude at 6 p.m.”
“Before the Minister of State responds, I welcome the Old Belvedere Rugby Football Club men's shed to the Public Gallery. Before I became a politician, the best grilling I got and the best preparation for debate was with the Loughrea men's shed in County Galway. I sat in with them a few times and they prepared me for life in politics very well, I welcome you all to the Gallery today and fair play to you for coming up.”
“We have a very comparable history on this island when it comes to peace and we could play a very key role in the peace process over there. I hope that they can have a future of peace in the Middle East.”
“Drivers are left sitting in yards unable to get into the cabs of trucks for a full six months while the RSA carries out a process that has already been done by the immigration bureau. I do not understand that. It takes 12 weeks on average but can take up to six months in Ireland while it takes the department of transport in Poland an average of one month. Why are we, in some cases, six times slower than Poland? Can we eradicate the RSA duplication all together? I would also like to welcome Senator Andrews back. What he did was very brave, fair play to him. What has gone on over the last two years is so sad. I echo the sentiments of Senator Stephenson that Ireland could play a very key role in both establishing and maintaining peace in Palestine.”
“I would like to be associated with the condolences to Senator Costello on the loss of her dad. It is a very sad time for her. I would also like to say my own hello to Mr. Ken Kerr. As someone who lived for quite a while in Maryland, it is great to have him here today. I wish to raise the issue of critical skills visas for drivers coming into this country to drive trucks for road haulage companies. The Garda National Immigration Bureau carries out the initial background check on these licences before people come into the country. The RSA then duplicates that process. Why are two State bodies operating in silos and not communicating with each other? The RSA process can take up to six months.”
“The Minister of State has done a really good job, along with the Minister, Deputy Chambers, and the Minister, Deputy Donohoe. I can stand over an awful lot of what was in the budget yesterday. There is a lot more to do but we have done an awful lot of good with yesterday's budget.”
“Yes, the cost could be lowered more but parents have been crying out for certainty and now they have it, which I welcome. Another example that the Government has listened and learned is the €1 million for student mental health. The Government understands that there is a huge need for investment in a broad range of areas that affect students in Ireland. Again, I really welcome the allocation. The allocation of €3 million for disability supports at third level is a massive investment and is really positive. There is an awful lot we could do better and we will go into it at committee meetings and in this Chamber when we have the relevant Ministers in, but yesterday we got it right in a lot of cases. I really welcome an awful lot of those measures that I have just gone through.”
“I attended the expo that took place in the RDS three weeks ago and it was an unbelievable day. It just shows the range of apprenticeships that are out there and that I was not even fully sure existed. There are so many apprenticeships and a 17% reduction in apprenticeship contributions is really positive. On the €500 reduction in the student contribution fee, I heard the back and forth yesterday both in the media and in the Chamber that it is not a reduction but an increase. It is not. For the first time in years a Minister has said to parents that they have certainly next August that they do not face a potential fee or charge of €3,000 but rather a charge of €2,500, that we understand they are under pressure and that we are permanently reducing the stresses they face by €500. That, in my opinion, is hugely positive.”
“We cannot complain too much about that. It is a really good step in the right direction. On higher education, the Minister, Deputy Lawless, put a really good stamp on yesterday's budget with a 17% reduction in apprenticeship contributions. That is a really positive step. It shows that the Minister is attuned to the issues we have with the shortage of apprentices and is trying to make this country more attractive for apprentices. As I have said ad nauseam both in this Chamber and when attending committees, there seems to have been an obsession in this country with attaining a level 8 degree. We need to ensure that apprenticeships are seen as just another normal thing to do or a really good thing to aspire to. We need really high quality craft apprenticeships and other apprenticeships all around the country.”
“Yesterday, we saw 860 additional teachers in the special education setting. It is a huge step in the right direction and, again, hugely welcomed by the unions. I spoke to representatives of both unions last night and this morning and they hugely welcomed the development. We must now have more inclusive options for students with special needs in mainstream education and I will give two examples that are a niche core issue right now. Some children with special needs can find it very hard to access the subjects of art and music at second level. We need more teachers for those subjects so that children with special needs can strive to be students in those classrooms and ensure there is no barrier ever for disabilities. We could work on that. Again, there will be another 860 additional teachers in special education settings.”
“An increase of €20 is probably not enough but it is a step in the right direction. We have more to do. The Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, bringing in €16 million extra funding for therapies on site in special schools is really important. When I was a teacher I saw the implications for a child when he or she was taken out of his or her normal routine and sent anything between 30 km and 50 km to the nearest centre to receive special needs therapies. Having therapies on site will be a game-changer for some of those people. It is really important that we roll out that service aggressively in the years to come and expand it into special needs classes at mainstream level. The measure is a really good step in the right direction. The Minister of State mentioned inclusive public services.”