Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 April 2021
752. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will extend the recent fee exemption for Erasmus students to all students that are required to spend time overseas as part of their course; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21609/21]
View answerThe decision to support Erasmus+ participants with mandatory hotel quarantine was taken in the specific context of the Erasmus programme, for which my Department is the national authority.
Ireland is designated as a programme country under the Erasmus+ programme. As part of the programme, each programme country must nominate a national authority to monitor and supervise the management of the programme at national level. Ireland’s nominated Erasmus+ national authority is based in the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science.
As national authority, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has designated the Higher Education Authority (HEA) as national agency for Erasmus+ in the field of higher education. As the national agency, the HEA is responsible for the participation of the higher education sector. The national authority provides co-funding for the operational costs to the European Programmes Unit of the HEA.
The policy of the national authority has always been to strongly encourage participation in the Erasmus+ programme. On this basis the Department, as national authority, has agreed to cover the cost of mandatory hotel quarantine for Erasmus+ participants at all levels who are returning to Ireland from countries on the quarantine list. We are not in a position to extend this support beyond the Erasmus+ programme.
