Vol. 525 No. 5
377 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason he did not initiate a sworn independent inquiry into the summer 2000 exam irregularities at Limerick Institute of Technology as requested by the TUI branch there; the action he will take to offset the threatened industrial action for exams in 2001; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25461/00]
There is no provision in the Regional Technical Colleges Acts, 1992-99, to enable me to establish a sworn public inquiry, nor do I have the power generally to establish such an inquiry.
Under the terms of the Regional Technical Colleges Acts, matters relating to examinations are clearly a statutory function of the managements and governing bodies of the institutes of technology. In this regard, it is my understanding that the director of the institute is seeking to appoint a reputable and independent third party to hold an inquiry and to report on this matter. I also understand that the staff directly connected with the matter have agreed to co-operate with this approach, with the exception of two persons, and that the college authorities are continuing to seek a resolution of this situation in advance of initiating the proposed inquiry.
Given the statutory role and functions of the management and governing body, I believe that the matter can and should be resolved locally.
