Ivana Bacik

Order of Business

Thursday, 12 January 2012

Senator Ivana Bacik:     As with Senator O’Brien and all other Senators, I am very concerned by the announcement of prospective job losses in Ulster Bank and by the news that there are likely to be other job losses in other banks. It is a matter of real concern and emphasises the importance of the jobs strategy the Government announced yesterday. It will be launching a more detailed plan in the coming week. We must feel sympathy for the staff who face potential job losses. This prospect obliges all of us to think more creatively about job creation and activation measures.

The Minister, Deputy Burton, has spoken persuasively about the need to ensure social protection strategies are geared towards retraining, activation and getting people back into the jobs market. I agree with Senator Darragh O’Brien that the Members of this House will have an opportunity to engage in some brainstorming on this matter next week. As part of a new method of debate, no Minister will be present for the discussion. I have been reflecting on the experience of my legal background to consider how the high level of legal knowledge and training in this House can be used to try to generate jobs and resources for society. We can all come up with interesting and creative ideas that are informed by our particular backgrounds. A particular strength of the Seanad might be as the forum for such a constructive debate.

I would like to call for a debate with the Minister for Education and Skills. I assure my colleagues that I have been trying to ensure the Minister, Deputy Quinn, comes to the House for a general debate. The Minister will be present for legislative debates, but Senators would like him to come here for a more general debate as well. We were all glad to hear the Minister announce last night that the impact of budgetary changes on DEIS schools will be reviewed. He said the Department of Education and Skills will report on the position of DEIS band 1 and band 2 schools within four weeks. I was particularly pleased to hear that the report will focus on how the loss of posts under the older schemes will affect such schools. I think we will see a renewed commitment to the maintenance of supports for students in DEIS schools. We need a bigger debate in light of the reports that have been commissioned by the Minister on the extent to which programmes like DEIS ensure greater educational opportunity for students. I understand the reports in question are being published today. We need to examine carefully the impact of DEIS and the other schemes. We should reflect on whether, in some ways, we are allowing for the segregation of economic classes within our schools. We have to be careful about the way our school system is run.

I welcome the presence of officials from the Revenue Commissioners and other bodies at yesterday’s meeting of the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform. It was an important demonstration of the exercise of the investigative powers of Oireachtas committees. The ham-fisted attempts of the Revenue Commissioners to inform people of potential tax liabilities have been the subject of significant public concern. The failure of the Revenue Commissioners to stay on top of this matter on an ongoing basis clearly points to an inefficiency in the system. Many people felt shock and unnecessary fear when they considered their possible tax liabilities.

Order of Business

29^th September 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     The motion on today’s Order Paper, amending the terms of reference of the Seanad Public Consultation Committee, again gives us a better opportunity to engage with the public and in public consultation. It is part of the ongoing process of reform of Seanad procedures in which we are engaged in this Government, which was sadly neglected under the previous Government.

I also thank colleagues for contributing to the Labour Party’s Private Members’ motion yesterday with the Minister, Deputy Bruton in attendance. It was again a useful and productive debate with constructive suggestions being made and the Minister saying on the record that he would go back to consider extending the notice period in collective redundancy situations from 30 days. I thought that debate was very much worthwhile having.

I call on the Leader to arrange for the Minister for Health, or I should say Minister for Education and Skills to come into this House… for a debate on third level education in light of the lobby by the Union of Students in Ireland, which many of us attended. The USI has an impressive and reasonable lobbying programme and it calls, reasonably enough, for a freeze on the student contribution currently set at €2,000, no introduction of any further fees and investment in the student assistance fund. It would be worthwhile in this House, particularly given the interest many of us have in education and in third level education, that we would debate the proposals made by the USI with the Minister as soon as we can.

Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Bill, 2011: Second Stage (Resumed)

Tuesday, 20 September 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     I join others in welcoming the Minister to the House for the new term. I thank Senator Moran for sharing her time with me.

Like other Senators, I believe this Bill, which I welcome, has cross-party support. It is the culmination of a long process of reviewing the framework for ensuring quality in education and training. It is good to see it before the House. I am glad the Minister has initiated it in the Seanad. It is very worthwhile given how many of us in this House have long had an interest in higher education at third level. I refer not only to the university Senators but also to those with a broad range of experience and expertise, which expertise will be evident from the debate.

I am glad we are debating this Bill just after the inaugural address in Trinity College of the new Provost, Professor Prendergast. The Minister was in attendance and heard the speech. Other colleagues were also present. I referred to the speech earlier and on the Order of Business. The Provost mounted a very robust defence of the universities in general and Trinity College in particular, pointing out that the latter is unique in having achieved a top-50 place amount institutions worldwide. He pointed out that, at its peak, it was 43rd in the world. This fact should be compared with the fact that only one Irish company has achieved a rank by Fortune 500 in its list of top companies. It was approximately 490th. Trinity’s achievement is remarkable for an Irish institution. That we have slipped back to 65th place is, as the Provost said, a testament to the economic difficulties we face and the challenges that exist for all, including the university sector. The Provost made a very strong case for preserving the autonomy of universities, particularly with regard to hiring practices.

I do not agree with the Provost’s analysis of the return of third level fees but agree with him there is a need to ensure adequate resourcing of the university sector to ensure we maintain a culture of innovation and creativity therein. The Minister has said on many occasions that he agrees with that. A HEA report, issued today, shows the direct benefit to the economy or return on investment from investment by the State in research centres in universities, institutes of technology and colleges. That is very important and provides a very good context for debate.

Quality in education is central to international rankings and our attraction of international students. It is important that we see an amalgamation of the agencies currently providing for quality assurance at third level and in further education. We all welcome that. The new body with the unpronounceable name, as others have called it, does represent a streamlining of existing quality assurance mechanisms.

I have reflected on the name QQAI, as others have. An acronym such as “QI” could preset a difficulty because of the Stephen Fry programme of the same name. There is potential for using “CI”, which could stand for “Cáilíochtaí Ireland”. It would be like the Fáilte Ireland example given by the Minister. It is certainly a lot more pronounceable than QQAI. A more facetious example would be “QUACK”, which could stand for “Quality Assurance for Colleges and Kids”, but that would not be very suitable. In any case, a title that is easier to say would be an advantage. Furthermore, it would consolidate the status of the authority for individuals, service providers and, much more important, service users, including students at all levels. It is very important that people be aware of this. Until I read the briefing notes on this Bill, I was not fully aware of the wide range of agencies and bodies providing for quality assurance. That itself shows the need for this Bill.

That the authority will have eight members chosen on the basis of expertise rather than representation is important. I am glad to see, however, that the Minister will be requesting the USI to provide an individual to be appointed to the authority. Thus, the authority will have a representative nature to some extent. As with Senator Power, I was the only student in the room at many meetings when I was president of Trinity Students Union. It is important to have student representation and also that members of the authority be chosen on the basis of expertise.

I am interested specifically in the issue of quality assurance in universities, having participated in reviews within Trinity and having worked as an external reviewer for colleges in Ireland and other jurisdictions. The universities already have a quite established quality review process under way. I am interested in knowing, however, how section 37 will affect that because it seems quite open-ended in terms of empowering the new authority to conduct quality reviews. I am wondering how it will work in practice alongside the reviews already being conducted within the universities.

The provisions on internationalising education in sections 54 to 57 are very important. Universities are already signed up to Ireland’s international strategy and to attracting more international students. The Bill will really facilitate that and it is very important.

Will the Minister clarify how the Bill deals with the difficulty with so-called bogus colleges? There was some reference to this in briefings. The Bill will make it easier to tackle the difficulty. It is a very small issue but there has been some media reportage on colleges being set up to attract students from abroad rather than to offer quality education, particularly in the English language sector.

I have two other points to raise. Schedule 3 to the Bill provides for an amendment to the Universities Act 1997. It relates to section 9 of the Act and the universities established thereunder, of which there is none. The Minister pointed that out in his speech. Why preserve the provision? Is it a reference to the new university for the south east, on which we have had some debate already today on the Order of Business and on which there is considerable debate in general?

My final point relates to a point raised by Senator Power, on which I have done a great deal of work in Trinity College. I refer to access to university for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. It is a particular problem within the university sector. The ITs have a better record on this. Programmes such as the Trinity Access Programmes and the BITE programme in DIT have tried to ensure more developed routes for access to third level for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. What are the implications for those programmes of this Bill? Is there a specific route of progress? Will the certificates offered for participating in the programmes be subject to review under the Bill? I have an open mind as to whether they should. Most of the courses in question are post-leaving certificate courses but I wonder whether they fall within the remit of the Bill.

I welcome the Bill as one of the many reforms in the education sector that the Minister is in the process of carrying out.

Order of Business

20^th September 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik:     It is not often that I rise to support Senator Darragh O’Brien’s remarks robustly, but it was a great day for Dublin and I join with the Senator in congratulating the team and Pat Gilroy, its manager. It is probably no coincidence that tomorrow will be blue day in the Oireachtas.

…     We will all wear blue in support of men’s cancer programmes, although it may be somewhat difficult for some of our Kerry colleagues to conform. It was a great result not just for Dublin, but also for tourism. Ireland had a great result in Saturday’s rugby. Both results gave a considerable boost to people’s positivity in the face of significant economic challenges.

I renew my call for a debate on third level education. The Minister will attend the Chamber to discuss the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Bill 2011 and issues concerning universities may be raised in that context and in light of the inaugural address of the provost of Trinity, Professor Patrick Prendergast. Like other Senators, I had the privilege of attending that address. It is worth pointing out that he noted Trinity’s achievements and mounted a robust defence of it and universities generally at a time when universities and higher education are coming under attack. As he stated, Trinity is unique in entering the list of the top 50 universities worldwide. It was in 43rd place at its highest point, but it has since slipped down. Being one of the top 50 was a considerable achievement. As the provost pointed out, only one Irish-owned company numbers among the Fortune 500 companies. Trinity is now in 65th place and there is a concern that reduced funding and resourcing of third level and the stifling of autonomous decision-making will hinder creativity and innovation in universities.

A Higher Education Authority, HEA, study today shows that Government investment in research in universities, colleges and institutes of technology has had a direct return in investment of €1.8 billion. This is a matter of great concern at this time of economic challenge. I will renew my call to the Minister, but we need a fuller debate on third level funding. It is important that universities have autonomy and, in light of student numbers doubling, be able to hire when necessary. It should not be an either-or situation. It is not a case of putting investment into primary or third level. It should be a case of investing in education at all levels. University is not a luxury - it is a necessity, even in a time of economic challenge.

I congratulate Dublin on its ranking as ninth in the list of the world’s bicycle-friendly cities. According to a Danish survey published today, this is due to visionary politicians. It is worth mentioning our lord mayor, Councillor Andrew Montague, who pioneered the Dublin bikes scheme, which has gone a long way towards making Dublin such a great city not just for football, but also for cyclists.

SPHE Curriculum: Motion

Wednesday, 20 July 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik: I welcome the Minister to the House and I compliment the Independent nominees group on this very useful motion. I listened to the debate on the monitor and it has been very strong. It has been very encouraging to hear the words of the Minister. It is useful for us to consider the social, personal and health education programme and I know Senator Moran and others went into great detail on it. I have always been a strong supporter of it but the concerns raised in the motion are important. The quality and inconsistency of implementation of the programme are a concern. I know the Department is addressing these concerns and that studies to which others have referred show implementation is patchy in quality and in need of improvement, particularly in the relationships and sexuality education component. The studies also show great satisfaction among parents with the rollout generally of the RSE component of the programme and there is great commitment to it.

I thought I might follow the Minister’s example, and that of other speakers, and stray little from the subject of the SPHE programme and speak a little more generally on the education topic. I compliment the Minister on the fact he has hit the ground running. Some of the wide-ranging issues he covered in his speech show this and they include admissions policy in schools, the national forum on patronage and initiatives at third level. Coming from the third level sector, I know colleagues understand the need for cutbacks but we have great hopes we will see enough investment at third level to ensure we maintain a cutting edge in research and innovation because this is key to our economic development and recovery. Trinity College Dublin, where I have the privilege of working, consistently ranks highly in the international league tables, recently in the world rankings in the arts sector and we are very proud of this. We need to maintain these rankings. I know the Minister is very much aware of this.

I also want to speak generally on primary and secondary education as this is the focus of the debate. I speak as the parent of a child at primary level and, as the Minister is well aware, as the chair of a local Educate Together school start-up group covering the area of the Dublin South-East and Dublin South-Central constituencies, namely, the Portobello multi-denominational group. More than 400 parents are now members of this group and it is still growing. It was established last year in response to immense local demand. The group is very excited by the prospect of the national forum on patronage and we have made a submission to it. The group is living evidence of the increased demand for new forms of multi-denominational schooling and a mismatch between the current provision at primary and secondary levels and the wants and needs of parents.

Other speakers have pointed out - and I am aware the national forum is considering this matter - the disconnection between the provisions of the Constitution which provide for parental choice in the manner of education of their children and the reality for many parents which is that in practice they are forced to send their children to schools where the ethos is one which they do not share. This is because we live in a country where 96% of education provision at primary level is denominational, largely under the patronage of the Catholic Church. Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has recognised this position is no longer tenable. Out of 3,200 national schools throughout Ireland, less than 60 are multi-denominational schools under the patronage of Educate Together. As the parent of a child attending a multi-denominational school I am very conscious that the Educate Together model is about more than multi-denominational education; it is also a model of education that is child-centred and that encourages and requires parental involvement at a greater level than other schools.

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, to the House to take over from the Minister in an eminently capable capacity. Her brief covers equality and what I am speaking about goes a little beyond the motion on SPHE but covers the need to see greater recognition of diversity in the provision of education in this country, not only at primary level where the focus is at present, but also at second level. I was going to give the Minister, Deputy Quinn, a final compliment on his recent announcement that he will recognise Educate Together as a patron at secondary level. This is very important for the many parents who now wish to see their children, who have been educated through a multi-denominational primary system, receive at second level an education that is child focused and multi-denominational. This choice does not exist at present.

The debate on SPHE and the need for consistency in the rollout of the RSE component is about supporting diversity among pupils. We also need to examine how we support the diverse ethos among various parents in an increasingly pluralist republic. The Minister and the Government have a real commitment to ensuring greater support for diversity in the education system generally and I look forward to this support being evidenced in the actions of the Government over the coming term.

Order of Business

12^th July 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik: I support Senator O’Brien’s call for a cross-party motion in the House on Palestine. It would be a suitable topic for a cross-party motion; the Labour Party would fully support it. The idea first mooted by Senator Quinn is good and this is a good week to do it, given the visit this week of Dr. Sha’ath.

We all might predict the type of questions we will ask Mr. Buzek, the President of the European Parliament. Senator O’Brien has already alluded to that. It is an auspicious day with the positive announcement on interest rates but it is worrying that this appears to have been precipitated by the news from Italy and concerns about that country’s debt levels. Some of us might frame our questions in the context of what will happen in the eurozone generally.

I again ask the Leader to arrange a debate on media ethics. Since last week, when I and others raised the issue of the News of the World, matters have moved swiftly. I doubt that any of us expected or anticipated the announcement that the News of the World would close. Many honest journalists lost their jobs as a result. It appears to have been a rather cynical move by Mr. Rupert Murdoch to try to save his bid for the takeover of BSkyB, which now appears unlikely to be successful. It has become a full-blown political scandal in Britain and has serious implications for the British Government. In Ireland, there is a need to debate media ethics to try to forestall any news that these underhand and illegal tactics have spread to Irish newspapers. News International has a big hold on the Irish newspaper market with both The Sun and the The Sunday Times. News of the despicable and illegal attempts to get material on Mr. Gordon Brown and his family should be a warning for us to ensure that these tactics are not used in Ireland. I hope we can have a debate on this issue.

I seek a debate on the future of universities. In that context, I congratulate Trinity College which has been named among the leading universities in the world in the latest QS world university rankings. Social sciences feature in the top 100 for each of the listed disciplines. I confess a certain self interest in this regard given that the law school in Trinity College is in the top 100. Trinity College is also the only Irish university to make it into the top 50 for sociology, politics and international studies. That is a remarkable achievement in view of the level of cutbacks the third level sector has faced in recent times. A debate early in the next session on the future of the university sector would be very useful.

Order of Business

22^nd June 2011

Senator Ivana Bacik: Yesterday, Senator Norris raised the case of the Magdalene laundries. Perhaps we can have a debate in this House on the initial report, which is to be made to Cabinet by the interdepartmental committee announced by the Government. Senator Norris and others have raised ongoing issues that have come to light in respect of the Magdalene laundries. I refer to the article by Mary Raftery in The Irish Times of two days ago, which outlined the ways in which health and safety and factories legislation should have applied to these laundries. A further article by Patsy McGarry in The Irish Times today outlined that many Departments used the services of the laundries, which were able to undercut other laundry services because they were paying no wages to the incarcerated women. We need to have a debate on this in the Seanad as soon as the interdepartmental committee has made its report. I welcome the announcement of the interdepartmental committee to investigate the facts. We must keep oversight of this within the Legislature, as well as having the Government call the independent committee.

I ask the Leader for a debate on education. Others called for a debate on the allocation of special needs assistants. In response, the Leader said that the Department of Education and Skills has given a clear and welcome indication that existing levels of special needs assistants in special schools will be maintained in order to protect and assist the most vulnerable children. The Department will ensure all schools that enrol children with significant care needs will have special needs assistant support allocated to the school. However, there is concern about a reduction in the number of special needs assistants. The previous Government decided to cap the special needs assistant posts in 2010.

…     In fairness, we need a debate on this to ensure all children who require special needs assistants receive the service. The context of this must be understood. If we call on the Minister for Education and Skills to attend the Chamber for a debate on special needs assistants, we should also have him discuss the severe cuts to the visiting teacher service for Travellers and the resource teacher allocation for Travellers. There has been much less publicity about that. I have been contacted by someone who works with the visiting teacher service for Travellers and many of us have been contacted by those concerned about the damage this will do to the inclusion of Traveller children in the education system. An EU funded report from 2008 refers to the visiting teacher service for Travellers in Ireland as being successful in increasing the participation of Traveller children. The reaction was positive and the Department of Education and Skills, in its circular, acknowledged that few initiatives in the area of Traveller education have been as successful as the appointment of visiting teachers who liaise between travelling families, schools and other agencies. We need a debate on that and whether the cut is necessary. It seems to have far too serious an impact on the education and inclusion of Traveller children.

I support the call by Senator Reilly for a debate on symphysiotomy with the Minister for Health. An important report was published on that appalling practice this week.

PORTOBELLO EDUCATE TOGETHER SCHOOL START-UP GROUP
www.portobellomds.org

PRESS RELEASE

Children’s Parade on Leinster House

10am Wednesday 3rd November  2010
 
(Photo Opportunity at 10am SHARP)

Tomorrow, Wednesday 3rd November at 10am, the Portobello Educate Together school start-up group will be staging a children’s parade on Leinster House. The group will assemble in Halloween costumes outside Leinster House on Kildare Street.

They will be handing in a petition to the Minister for Education to highlight the need for a new multi-denominational school to serve the communities of Dublin 2, 6, 8 and 12.

The petition has been signed by members of the group, their family members, friends and colleagues. Signatories include Joan Burton TD, University Senators Joe O’Toole, David Norris, and Labour Senators Dominic Hannigan and Phil Prendergast.

Spokesperson for the group, Senator Ivana Bacik, said today that:

“It is clear that demand for multi-denominational education in these areas of Dublin is far greater than the small number of places available in primary schools locally. This is clear from the large numbers of parents who have already joined the Portobello group, and who will be handing in petitions to the Minister for Education on Wed 3rd November.”

ENDS

Order of Business

Senator Ivana Bacik: I ask for a debate on the issue of choice in primary school education, a matter on which the Labour Party has a very clear policy, unlike other parties which have done nothing to ensure diversity of patronage across the sector. There will be a group of parents and children outside the gates of Leinster House tomorrow whose protest will take the form of a children’s parade calling for multidenominational school places to be made available.

Later today in the Seanad, Senator Ivana Bacik will be raising the issue of the impact of pay cuts upon contract researchers working at third-level institutions, as a matter on the adjournment. 

Senator Bacik will be asking the Minister for Education and Skills, Mary Coughlan, to inform the House, with regard to the application of the recent public sector pay cut to contract researchers in third-level institutions, why the European Commission have indicated that they will refuse to make future payments to universities who are not paying Marie Curie Fellows in full. She will also ask the Minister to confirm whether her Department plans to review the situation with regard to Marie Curie Fellows as the funding will otherwise be lost to the universities concerned. 

Speaking on the adjournment, Senator Bacik will say: 

“This is a very topical issue on the day when we see the crisis in third-level funding making headlines. The HEA say that third-level colleges will need 4 billion euro extra in funding to cope with the 55,000 additional students they will be taking in over the next decade.” 

“It seems ridiculous that the Minister’s rigid and inflexible approach to contract researchers will cause colleges and universities to lose valuable research funding. This funding is at risk from external funders like the European Commission, because the Minister will not exempt externally funded third-level contract researchers from the public service pay cuts.” 

ENDS