Vol. 482 No. 6
454 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Education and Science the plans, if any, he has to pay fees for students attending third level designated colleges in Britain in view of the introduction of fees in Britain; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18829/97]
480 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Education and Science if he has had investigations made into the implications of the Dearing report on the number of places in the higher education system; and if he has contacted his counterpart in the British Government in this regard. [19162/97]
I propose to answer Questions Nos. 454 and 480 together.
The report of Sir Ron Dearing on the Future of Higher Education in the UK was published in July 1997. Arising from this report, Mr. David Blunkett, the UK Secretary of State for Education and Employment announced that he planned to introduce an annual tuition fee of up to £1,000 depending on parental income, that tuition would continue to be free for students from lower income families and that maintenance grants would be replaced by student loans. He further advised that a White Paper, which is yet to be published, will detail the new arrangements.
At this stage, it is not possible, in advance of the publication of the White Paper, to fully assess the implications of the Dearing recommendations on the number of places in the higher education system or on students from the Republic who are attending college in Britain. I have been in contact with the Secretary of State on this matter and we are in the process of arranging a meeting to discuss it in conjunction with other matters.
