Vol. 560 No. 1
380 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Education and Science if a person (details supplied) in County Limerick can be approved and awarded a higher education grant from Mayo County Council for a masters postgraduate course, in view of the fact that this person never received grant assistance towards third level education in the past. [1404/03]
The decision on eligibility for third level grants is a matter for the relevant local authority or VEC. These bodies do not refer individual applications to my Department except, in exceptional cases, where, for example, advice or instruction regarding a particular clause in the relevant scheme is desired. It appears that no such advice or instruction was sought in the case of the student referred to by the Deputy.
It is not open to me, or my Department, to depart from the terms of the maintenance grants schemes in individual cases.
