Fresh guidance issued on phone BAN in schools after €9m pouch fury as McEntee denies Government U-turn
National guidelines on
Advertisement
3
Simon Harris said the budget funding would be for all kinds of phone storage solutions
Credit: � 2024 PA Media, All Rights Reserved
3
Helen McEntee said the measure aimed to 'enhance' student wellbeing
Credit: Brian Lawless/PA Wire
The opposition criticised the pouch funding as a waste of public money while the Government said the funding averaged out at around €20 per student.
In the
This includes lockable boxes, cubby holes or drop off and collection at the school office.
He said a new procurement process is to be published 'in the coming days'.
Advertisement
Read more in News
He added: 'This will not delay schools in applying for and accessing funding for phone-storage solutions.
'An application process will be open to post-primary schools soon and the issuing of funding will commence shortly thereafter.
'A new procurement process will be published in the coming days and then schools will be able to seek to apply to draw down funding and put in place the phone-storage solution that works best for them. This is a pragmatic and sensible way to proceed.'
Speaking on
Advertisement
MOST READ ON THE IRISH SUN
Exclusive
She said: There is absolutely no U-turn here.'
Muireann O'Connell slams new proposed Budget 2024 plan for smarts phones in schools
In the guidance issued on Friday, primary schools now require a policy to ban the use of and access to mobile phones during the school day.
Secondary schools require a policy to restrict mobile phone use during the school day, using the
The Department of Education said the measure aimed to 'enhance' student wellbeing, reduce cyber bullying and exposure to inappropriate content, and 'promote' focus in school.
Advertisement
'CONSISTENT APPROACH'
McEntee said: 'First and foremost, this policy is about ensuring that our schools are phone-free learning environments.'
'Students should not be on their phones during the school day. This guidance and support will ensure all schools have the supports they need to achieve this, having regard to their own requirements.
'Having engaged with many different school communities across the country, I am confident that this policy will support student wellbeing, engagement and their interaction with their peers, while also recognising the experience and expertise of school communities and the need for consultation.'
She added: 'This initiative empowers school communities to lead on the issue, backed by €9m in funding to allow post-primary schools to use the phone storage solution that works best for their school community and their students.'
Advertisement
The department said the method used to limit phone use will be decided by each school, and could include phone storage pouches or lock boxes, keeping phones in lockers, using classroom lockable boxes or cubbies, and drop-off and collection at the school office.
It said: 'Schools will adopt a consistent approach for the full school day, with limited exemptions allowed for medical or compassionate grounds, as outlined in the guidance information."
3
The opposition criticised the pouch funding as a waste of public money
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Journal
9 hours ago
- The Journal
Tánaiste highlights human rights abuses as Taliban mark fourth year in power in Afghanistan
AFGHANISTAN'S TALIBAN AUHTORITIES mark the fourth anniversary of their takeover today, buoyed by Russia's first official recognition of their government, a step they hope other countries will follow. Parades were planned in several cities, including in central Kabul, where helicopters were set to drop flowers and the white-and-black flags of the Taliban's 'Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan' fluttered across the city to mark their capture of the capital on 15 August, 2021. Taliban members gathered on Thursday night at a square near the shuttered US embassy – seat of their enemy during their 20-year insurgency – waving flags and setting off fireworks, an AFP journalist said. The military parade held last year with much fanfare at the Bagram airbase, once the linchpin for US-led operations, was cancelled this year, without public explanation. The Taliban government remains largely isolated on the global stage over restrictions imposed under their severe interpretation of Islamic law, targeting women in particular. The International Criminal Court issued in July arrest warrants for two senior Taliban leaders, accusing them of crimes against humanity over the persecution of women and girls, who are banned from most education and work, as well as parks, gyms and travelling without a male guardian. Tánaiste Simon Harris said the anniversary is an opportunity to highlight the ongoing suffering and abuse of the Afghan people. He said Ireland is committed to progressing multilateral initiatives with the help of the European Union and the United Nations. 'A secure future can only be achieved through full respect for civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights, as well as commitment to inclusive and representative governance,' Harris said. Taliban authorities scored a victory in early July when Russia became the first country to officially recognise their administration. Advertisement Kabul also enjoys close ties, despite lacking official recognition, with countries including Central Asian states, China and the United Arab Emirates. On the Western front, the Taliban government reported talks in Kabul with officials from Norway, Britain and the United States, among others. The authorities face almost no internal opposition, though steep challenges stem from economic fragility, international aid cuts and the influx of four million Afghans expelled from neighbouring countries. Independent experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council on Thursday called on the international community not to normalise relations with the Taliban authorities and to reject their 'violent and authoritarian rule'. 'Operating without legitimacy, the Taliban enforces an institutionalised system of gender oppression, crushes dissent, exacts reprisals, and muzzles independent media while showing outright contempt for human rights, equality and non-discrimination,' the experts said in a statement. The Tánaiste described the reality for women and minority groups in Afghanistan. 'Women and girls are especially suffering; forced to a life behind closed doors, losing their basic rights to education, employment, freedom of movement and access to services,' he said. 'The horrific situation regarding the curtailing of freedoms in Afghanistan is unprecedented and is the direct result of Taliban-imposed decrees. He continued: 'The Hazara people, and other vulnerable groups including LGBTQI+ persons have been facing horrendous human rights abuses under the current regime. 'We have seen extrajudicial killings, public executions, enforced disappearances, torture, arbitrary arrests and detentions become everyday threats for the people of Afghanistan.' Harris said Ireland has contributed €4 million this year to the United Nations to provide humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan and to support Afghan refugees in the wider region.
Irish Independent
13 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Banks are making obscene profits – we should tax them to fund cost-of-living package, says Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty
AIB and Bank of Ireland have made combined profits of €5bn this year but will pay little or nothing in Irish corporation tax on the profits, Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty said. This is because they are allowed to carry forward losses incurred during the banking collapse and set them off against any corporation tax they owe. Mr Doherty called for the law to be changed to stop investors in the banks pocketing billions of euro in dividends. If the profits of the banks were fully taxed, it would fund energy credits for families this winter, he added. 'There is something rotten at the core of our economy when banks can extract €5bn in profits and pay essentially no tax,' Mr Doherty said. The two banks have a combined corporation tax liability of just €39m for 2024. Obscene profits have been made over the last year The Donegal TD said the Government needs to 'stop facilitating the banks to avoid paying taxes on profits' they have made off the back of ordinary workers. 'Obscene profits have been made over the last year as banks heaped more pressure on workers and families during a cost-of-living crisis,' he added. The Government has said it will not be paying out a cost-of-living package, which included energy credits last year, in this October's budget. Mr Doherty said: 'The two big banks in the State, AIB and Bank of Ireland, boasted a combined profit of €5bn in 2024. ADVERTISEMENT 'We know from their financial statements that they now plan to not pay fair taxes on these unjustified profits – profits that are just the result of jacking up mortgage rates and short-changing savers.' Mr Doherty referenced the annual report of Bank of Ireland, which he claimed shows it plans to pay less than 2pc of its profits in tax, just €31m in Irish corporation tax. 'But it gets worse,' he said. 'AIB plans to pay just 0.3pc in corporation tax, or just €8m, to the Irish public on the profits they made in 2024.' He claimed this means Bank of Ireland is avoiding €221m in taxes, and AIB is avoiding paying €319m, even under Ireland's generous corporate tax rate of 12.5pc. 'That's over half a billion euro that could be helping workers and families through the cost-of-living crisis that is being siphoned off into corporate coffers and investors' pockets.' He said AIB and Bank of Ireland avoid paying tax on their bumper profits by carrying forward losses they have incurred in the wake of the financial crash and the subsequent bailout. The bailout is a gift that keeps on giving Mr Doherty said Ireland is an outlier in effectively applying no limitation on corporations carrying forward losses. He said the ability of bailed-out banks to avoid paying tax should end. 'The bailout is a gift that keeps on giving. And the Irish public keeps on paying,' he said. 'Government-sanctioned corporate profiteering needs to end. 'Banks must be made to pay their fair share of taxes.' The Department of Finance said what it called 'loss relief for corporation tax' is a long-standing feature of the Irish corporate tax system and a standard feature of corporation tax systems in all Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. 'It recognises the fact that a business cycle runs over several years and that it would be unfair to tax income earned on profits in one year and not allow relief for losses incurred in another,' it said. Loss relief works by allowing a deduction for losses incurred in one accounting period against profits earned in another period. AIB said it is a very long-established part of Irish tax legislation that a business that makes a loss can offset that loss against its profits in later years and that is standard across all sectors. The bank added it adheres to all tax laws and rules and makes a significant tax contribution. 'In 2024, the total amount of taxes and levies paid and collected by AIB was €763m, with €376m of that paid by the group itself and a further €387m collected from employees, customers and shareholders, and paid over to the tax authorities,' it said. It said that as a result of changes announced by the finance minister in the budget in October 2023, AIB's bank levy payment has increased from €37m in 2023 to €94m in 2024, with a further levy of €94m to be paid in 2025. Bank of Ireland said that for last year, it will pay around €116m in Irish corporation taxes and levies made up of €31m in corporation tax and €85m for the bank levy. Since its introduction in 2014, Bank of Ireland has paid €404m for the bank levy. The group also pays taxes on profits generated in other jurisdictions. Bank of Ireland Group said, like any other company, it is allowed under the law and the tax codes to carry forward trading losses and utilise them against future trading profits. Changing the rules risks making Ireland a less attractive location for inward investment.
Irish Independent
14 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Communications Minister announces €10m in funding for public interest journalism
The latest round of funding forms part of a Government scheme introduced in Budget 2025 that committed to supporting reporting on local authorities and local courts granted through Coimisiún na Meán. Speaking about the announcement, Mr O'Donovan, said: 'Building on the success of Round 1 of the Local Democracy and Courts Reporting Schemes, I am pleased to announce the allocation to Coimisiún na Meán of a further €6m for the continuation of these Schemes, which will enable media outlets to further strengthen their coverage of local authorities and the Courts. In addition to the €6 million announced, another €4 million is also to be invested in areas where some news stories are underreported, €3 million of which will be ring-fenced for commercial radio under the News Reporting Scheme. The €3 million ring-fenced funding will enable commercial radio services to provide additional high-quality news reporting on matters of public interest. 'I am pleased to announce a specific allocation of €3m to the commercial radio sector through the News Reporting Scheme,' Mr O'Donovan said. "The allocation recognises the important role of commercial radio services in providing high-quality, trustworthy and accurate news to the public. 'This allocation is in line with the Programme for Government commitment to provide accessible funding to support the provision of objective news and current affairs content and will complement the ongoing supports already provided to the commercial radio sector through the Sound and Vision Scheme. 'Commercial radio stations play an invaluable role in community engagement, cohesion and the promotion of social inclusion across the country and provide a crucial public service in the delivery of trusted information to our citizens. "The funding will enhance the provision of high-quality public service content to both local and national audiences.' This year, Mediahuis Ireland, which publishes the Irish Independent, Sunday Independent and 11 regional titles, has benefited from the scheme operated by the media regulator and has hired more than a dozen reporters around the country focused on local democracy and courts reporting.
