COMMITTEE FOR EMPLOYMENT AND LEARNING
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
WEDNESDAY, 23 JUNE 2010
SOUTH WEST COLLEGE TECHNOLOGY & SKILLS CAMPUS, ENNISKILLEN
Present:
Mrs Dolores Kelly (Chairperson)
Mr. Trevor Clarke MLA
Mr. David McClarty MLA
M
rs Claire McGill MLA
Mr. Pat Ramsey MLA
Ms Sue Ramsey MLA
In Attendance:
Mr. Peter Hall (Assembly Clerk)
Miss Pauline Devlin (Clerical Supervisor)
Mr. Nathan McVeigh (Clerical Supervisor)
Mr. Bill Kinnear (Clerical Officer)
Apologies:
Mr Peter Weir MLA (Deputy Chairperson)
Mr. Paul Butler MLA
Rev. Dr Robert Coulter MLA
Ms Anna Lo MLA
Mr. William Irwin MLA
The meeting opened in public session at 11.10 am.
Apologies
Apologies are detailed above.
1. Minutes of the meeting held on 9 June 2010
Agreed: The minutes of the meeting of 9 June were agreed.
2. Matters Arising
The Committee agreed to proceed with agenda item 3.
- Draft Press Release
Members considered the draft press release regarding today’s meeting.
Agreed: Members agreed the content of the press release, and that it is issued by the Communications office.
- Draft Public Notice for Bills in Committee
Members considered the draft public notice seeking submissions regarding the Student Loans (Amendment) Bill and the Employment (No.2) Bill.
Agreed: Members noted that to reduce cost, both Bills were contained within one notice. Members agreed the content of the draft notice, and that it is published in newspapers.
3. Briefing by the Inter-Agency Co-ordinator on the present situation regarding Quinn redundancies
The Committee agreed to proceed with agenda item 4.
- Members noted receipt of a Departmental update on the redundancy service being offered to employees of Quinn Insurance.
- Mr Leslie Ross, Inter Agency Co-ordinator, updated the Committee on the current situation regarding redundancies at Quinn. The briefing was followed by a question and answer session.
Agreed: Members agreed to seek further information from Mr Ross.
4. Subordinate Legislation
The Committee agreed to proceed with agenda item 5.
SL1: The Further Education (Student Support) (Eligibility) Regulations ( Northern Ireland) 2010
Agreed: The Committee considered the above SL1 and agreed that it was content for the Department to make the Statutory Rule.
Mr Trevor Clarke left the meeting at 11.57 a.m.
Mr Pat Ramsey left the meeting at 11.57 a.m.
5. Matters Arising
The Committee agreed to return to agenda item 3.
- Allocation of Initial Teacher Education Places to Stranmillis University College for 2010/11
Members noted a memo from the Clerk to the Education Committee regarding correspondence from Dr Heaslett of Stranmillis University College.
- Report on the Welfare Reform Bill
Members noted that the Committee for Social Development has published its report on the Welfare Reform Bill. Members further noted that the Social Development Committee has recorded its thanks to the Committee for its contribution to the Committee stage of the Bill.
- AQW 6690/10 – Reviews currently being undertaken by DEL
The Committee considered the response from the Minister on issues raised in the AQ.
Agreed: Members agreed to discuss the response further at the next Committee meeting, and thanked Ms Ramsey for bringing her response to the attention of the Committee.
- Workforce Future Skills Needs Analysis
Members considered the update from the Department regarding Workforce Future Skills Analyses of the six Workforce Development Forum regions.
Agreed: Members agreed to further consider this document at the next meeting. Members also agreed to seek clarification from the Department on figures for the North West region.
6. Chairperson’s Business
Members noted one item of correspondence and agreed to return to consider the item at the next meeting.
7. Departmental Press Notices and Press cuttings
Members noted a number of recent Departmental press notices and other press articles.
8. Any Other Business
- Budget Monitoring Processes
Members noted a memo from the Committee for Finance and Personnel regarding the timetable for the 2010 Budget.
- DEL Consultation on the Blacklisting of Trade Unionists
Members noted the Department’s intention to consult on regulations to prohibit blacklisting of Trade Union members.
- Change of venue
Members noted that the next Committee meeting would be held in Room 30, Parliament Buildings, instead of Room 135.
9. Briefing from South West College on the work of the College
The Committee agreed to proceed with agenda item 4.
The Committee received a briefing from Malachy McAleer, Director of South West College, Leo Murphy, Head of Client Services, Ciaran Mc Manus, Deputy Head of Department and Dr Jill Cush, Business Innovation Centre, on the work of the college.
Sue Ramsey left the meeting at 12.32 p.m.
The meeting was inquorate at 12.32 p.m.