Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 13 Mar 1997

Vol. 476 No. 4

Adjournment Debate. - Third Level Tuition Fees.

Mrs. T. Ahearn

In the past few weeks this House has been dominated by education debates. I am proud of the many improvements this Government has brought about in the education sector. The issue I raise is the gross inequity suffered by students in the Royal College of Surgeons. Those students do not enjoy the free fees initiative introduced by the Government which was the difference between students being able to accept a place in college or not. This initiative has been much appreciated by students and parents alike.

Given that the Royal College of Surgeons has agreed to become involved in the CAO system it is extraordinary that the students who will get a place will not be entitled to avail of the initiative. The fees at this college are an enormous burden on students and families and many will not be able to afford them.

Under the CAO system, which we always boast is the fairest, we can have students who want to pursue a career in medicine but because they achieve the points for the Royal College of Surgeons rather than for UCD, UCC or any other college, they will have to pay up to £3,000 per annum in fees. This is a grave injustice to those students who, when filling in the CAO form, indicate their preference for the Royal College of Surgeons. Many will not be aware that should they get a place in the Royal College of Surgeons they will have to pay those fees while their fellow students can pursue their medical career in the other colleges and have their fees paid.

In a written reply I received during the week, the Minister for Education said that while the college will be part of the CAO system of entry from the commencement of 1997-8, it does not wish to be considered for inclusion in the free fees initiative at present.

I question the right of any college to decide that its students will not avail of the free fees initiative. This is an extraordinary statement. How fair is the CAO system if within it there is a college that does not provide the same opportunities because free fees are not included?

Many students who are studying desperately hard and who will achieve the necessary points for entry to the Royal College of Surgeons may not be able to accept their place simply because they cannot afford the fees. This is a grave injustice and should not be tolerated particularly since the college is within the CAO system.

I appeal to the Minister for Education to review the system and to take a decision based on the rights of students rather than on the preference of the college. I hope from 1997 onwards that students whose parents are paying tax and funding the free fees initiative for fellow students in other colleges will receive the justice they deserve by being allowed avail of it in the Royal College of Surgeons.

Minister of State at the Department of the Marine (Mr. Gilmore)

I thank Deputy Ahearn for raising this matter. In keeping with its commitment in the programme, A Government of Renewal, the Government phased out third level undergraduate tuition fees which were halved in 1995-6 and abolished from 1996-7. The free fees initiative is concrete evidence of the Government's commitment to promoting equality of access to higher education, irrespective of social class, age or disability, for all who have the capacity to benefit from it.

Under the free fees initiative, the State meets the tuition fees of eligible students who are attending full-time undergraduate courses, which must generally be of at least two years duration, at approved colleges. Over 28,000 students benefited under the initiative in the 1995-6 academic year. The costs associated with the initiative have been offset by the savings from the abolition of regressive covenant tax relief. Any extension of the initiative to other colleges, such as the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, would have to be considered in the light of overall resource constraints.

The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland met officials of the Department of Education regarding its inclusion of the free fees initiative. The Department advised the college that in considering any application for inclusion in the initiative regard would have to be had to the overall financial implications; the college's recognition for the purposes of the third level student support schemes operated by the Department of Education and whether the college was part of the CAO third level entry system. In addition the college would have to comply with the Higher Education Authority quota on medical places and confine the fees charged to Irish-EU students to a level in line with those charged by the other medical schools in Ireland.

The Department of Education has no plans to extend the scope of the free fees initiative to include the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. The college has written to the Department stating that while it will be part of the CAO system of entry from the commencement of the 1997-8 academic year, it does not wish to be considered for inclusion in the free fees initiative at present. Tax relief is available, at the standard rate, on fees paid to the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland in accordance with section 6 of the Finance Act, 1995.