An chéad ghnó eile ná ceisteanna. Tosnóimid le ceist Uimh. 53 in ainm an Teachta Rose Conway-Walsh.
Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions
Further and Higher Education
Rose Conway-Walsh
Ceist:53. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to provide an update on the second stage of the assessment process for increased veterinary provision, including details on the selection criteria, expert panel and ensuring international standards; the number of additional veterinary places that will be delivered and whether this will meet the current needs of the sector; when the first places will be delivered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6962/23]
Can the Minister provide an update on the second stage of the assessment process for the increased veterinary provision, including details on the selection criteria, the expert panel, ensuring international standards, the number of additional veterinary places that will be delivered, whether this will meet the current needs of the sector and when the first places will be delivered?
I thank Deputy Conway-Walsh for the question. As I know the Deputy is aware, the Higher Education Authority, HEA, has now completed the first stage of an expression of interest process for higher education institutions interested in building capacity in dentistry, pharmacy, medicine, nursing, and veterinary medicine. The second stage of this process has now commenced with the recent announcement by the Higher Education Authority of the appointment of an expert advisory panel to review the opportunities for new programmes covered by the process. The panel comprises representatives from Departments and regulatory and professional bodies who have direct professional experience and-or academic expertise in the relevant disciplines, or knowledge of the higher education system at a senior level.
Higher education institutions are, as we all know, autonomous bodies and are responsible for their own day-to-day management and operational affairs, including the management of academic affairs and course provision. The accreditation of courses with the relevant regulatory authorities in Ireland and abroad is a matter for individual institutions in line with this autonomy. EU Directive 2005/36/EC provides for mutual recognition of qualifications of a range of professions, including veterinary surgeons, on the basis of co-ordinated minimum conditions for training. The Veterinary Council of Ireland, VCI, is the competent authority as regulator with a robust accreditation processes to ensure all veterinary training in Ireland meets international standards. Any programmes, and this is important, deemed viable by the HEA will be subject to Veterinary Council of Ireland accreditation processes to validate them and to ensure high standards of veterinary medicine in Ireland through its accreditation. Such accreditation enables professional recognition in Ireland which then further affords access to registration in the UK, Europe and beyond. As the expert panel is currently reviewing the applications, it is not possible to say at this time how many places may be delivered, although I expect to receive their report next month and will be happy to share it with the Deputy then. The Higher Education Authority will consider opportunities for new programme provision alongside options for current programme expansion to develop a final list of options to present to me next month. My Department will then consider these options having regard to workforce plans and projected demand for graduates from relevant line Departments.
In short, specifically in relation to veterinary, there is an expert panel in place. Both the chief veterinary officer and the Veterinary Council of Ireland are represented on it, as is the HEA and others. I may get a chance to go through the criteria in my next response.
I thank the Minister. On to the figures, 302 qualified vets going on to the VCI register in 2022 shows a continuing rise year-on-year in the demand for vets. Some 70% of new vets entering the register were educated outside Ireland. That shows us the extent of the problem we have. We are agreed on that. We are deeply concerned that the panel lacks an independent expert on veterinary education, who has recent experience as a practising vet, to assess and deliver a new veterinary programme that would be appropriately accredited. It is paramount that the new programme for veterinary medicine is fit for purpose and meets the standards set out by the regulatory bodies such as the Veterinary Council of Ireland, as the Minister said, but also the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, RCVS. The Minister has agreed with me on so many occasions that we have to look at the delivery of something like veterinary on an all-island basis. We cannot have an add-on situation. We are at a real crossroads here and we can get this right. There is an onus on us all, and on the Minister, to get it right in terms of what we are going to deliver here.
I accept the Deputy's challenge. When I became Minister, the view, not just in my Department but also in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, was that we had enough spaces, which I thought was kind of crazy. The only place providing veterinary medicine at the moment is University College Dublin and, as the Deputy quite correctly said, as we have discussed on many occasions before, quite a number of Irish students are studying abroad. By way of example, 208 Irish students are enrolled in a veterinary medicine master's programme in Warsaw and 78 Irish veterinary students are enrolled in Wroclaw University in south-western Poland, and so on. I think 190 students are in Budapest. Slovakia attracts a smaller number, according to a combination of media reports and reports available to my Department. Yet we only have University College Dublin providing the course here. I am not suggesting the Deputy is doing this, but what we really must not do is to suggest it is about one institution over another. What we have here is a horizon scanning exercise. I stand over the expert panel, which includes the chief veterinary officer and the Veterinary Council of Ireland, and its credibility and authority. It will do its work and will report to me in March on what can be done within existing programmes to expand this and on whether new schools can be created. We will see what that menu of options gives us and will take it forward in March.
Given the level of investment required here, it is vital to get the education quality and the accreditation standards right from the beginning. I am not naming any one in particular, but the institute or the institutes, because there could be collaboration between North and South, tasked with delivering the course must have the capacity to deliver from the get-go. That is the bottom line. They must be able to attract and retain the best quality teaching staff and they must be able to cater for the veterinary needs of the whole island. They must achieve the VCI and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons accreditation standards, particularly as a policy change is expected next year by the RCVS to move away from the European standard there. Vet practices operate across the Border. We need to ensure that this continues. The new vet school needs to be capable of meeting those standards. Most important is the scale. We have such a severe shortage of vets here that the initial minimum intake of any course provider must be approximately 80 students with the capacity to expand to 120 in the short term. We should also be looking at developing the graduate entry routes to expand access. I am confident we can get this right if we do it in the way it needs to be done.
We will get it right because I would imagine the best people to tell us what is needed in terms of veterinary qualifications are the chief veterinary officer and the Veterinary Council of Ireland and they are on the panel. I would not be so rude or arrogant to suggest that I or indeed other individuals with views on this outside the House know better than they do. I have very clearly outlined in the answer that there is an accreditation process. Even after the HEA process does its work, there is still an accreditation process that has to be gone through in terms of meeting standards. However, let us be honest, and it is important to be. There are different people, although not the Deputy or myself, with different views as to which college or university it should be. I am happy for the expert panel to determine those options. I am happy to have confidence in the Veterinary Council of Ireland and the chief veterinary officer, just as I trust the Chief Medical Officer in medicine or the chief nurse in nursing. That has always been the approach we have taken. It is not my job as Minister in the Department of Further and Higher Education, Innovation, Research and Science to regulate or decide the regulatory professional standard. That is the job of the Veterinary Council of Ireland as the regulatory body. However, we will get it right; I agree with the Deputy on that. We need to be careful. The good news here is that there is a lot of competition, which is a good thing. There is a lot of interest. I am happy for the expert panel to do its work, independent and external of me, report back in March, and then in a very transparent way, stand over the process.
Third Level Fees
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin
Ceist:54. Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the reason students who have previously sat a year in a different course were excluded from the €1,000 discount on third levels fees when they are subject to the same cost of living pressures as everyone else. [7502/23]
I ask the Minister the reason students who have previously sat a year in a different course were excluded from the €1,000 discount on third levels fees when they are subject to the same cost of living pressures as everyone else.
As I am conscious this is the first time we have had an opportunity to take questions on fees in college since the passing of Deputy Ó Ríordáin's colleague, and our former Minister for Education, Niamh Bhreathnach, I take this opportunity to pay tribute to her and extend my condolences to her family, friends, to her Labour Party family and to the Deputy. Anytime we talk about fees, I am conscious of her very strong legacy. While the Deputy and I might debate how best to get there, we share a view that we need to do everything we can to reduce cost as a barrier. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam dílis.
As the Deputy knows, the Government has introduced a range of measures to support people with the cost of living. As part of this, we introduced a significant package to try to reduce the cost of going to college this year and the package provided for adjustments, including once-off measures. This included a once-off reducing of €1,000 in the student contribution rate payable by students eligible for free tuition fees under the Department's free fees initiative for this academic year. A key principle of the design of the free fees initiative is to encourage progression, that is, to support students in progressing through their chosen course of study from year to year.
As a result, students are not typically supported under the free fees initiative for a repeat period of study or a different course at the same level.
While I feel there are a few anomalies we need to address, in terms of students who move from one course to the next, the age at which they can move and the length of time they need to be out, it is a statement of fact that at the moment the free fees initiative does not allow for a repeat period of study or another first or second year. As a result of that, the students who are in such a situation did not qualify for the criteria set down by the scheme. It is that honest an answer, while I understand their frustration.
We have moved to try to support students in other ways through significantly topping up the student assistance fund to over €20 million for this academic year, the highest amount ever provided for under the fund. We have also made sure that students now qualify for the rent credit, which was not necessarily clear on budget day. We made sure it was through the Finance Bill.
There was a once-off reduction of €1,000 in the contribution this year. As I said on budget day last year and will say again, we are only warming up in terms of reducing the cost of education and fees. I will certainly reflect on those involved in repeat study as we prepare for the next Estimates process.
I very much appreciate the comments of the Minister on the former Minister, Niamh Breathnach. I know her family will as well. One of the radical things she did as Minister for Education was to abolish fees, something from which I benefited, as did many of my colleagues and friends. The debate was lost over the previous 25 years when registration fees crept up. People are now spending thousands of euro a year on fees.
Be that as it may, we are talking about a small cohort of students. It was a welcome measure. I know there is frustration in government that when something is announced there will always be a member of the Opposition who will say it is all very well but it should be tweaked more and the focus is on the negative. What the Minister did was welcome and things are going in the right direction. The Minister is making all of the right noises in terms of reducing third level fees to where they were 25 years ago. Does the Minister not feel that an additional measure or gesture could be made from Government to reduce the fees of a small cohort of students by €1,000, in line with everybody else?
I take the point the Deputy has made. In an ideal world this is an area I would like to move on. I am constrained by the decision that we made to hinge this on the free fees initiative. I must be honest; a number of students fell outside the qualifying criteria, namely, students attending private colleges or colleges that do not qualify for free fees or who repeated a year in the same course or a different one.
It is a thread that if I pull has more budgetary consequences than one might think looking initially at any one measure in isolation. It is something I will keep under review through the course of the year. Last year there were some underspends in SUSI and the like. If there are measures I can take later in the year, I will certainly consider that. We will make sure all of the funding allocated to assist students is spent and there if room to address this later in the year it is something I will keep under review.
We will publish a cost of education paper a lot earlier this year than we did last year in advance of the budget on the further options we can take to reduce the cost of education. We can tease through these issues then.
Over a period we want to achieve, at all levels of education, be it primary, secondary, third level and further education, a situation whereby nobody has to consider costs when it comes to furthering their education journey. It should never come into the conversation. It is depressing that people always have to think about the cost of education to a family when it should instead be about trying to fulfil their potential. However, when there is a price tag attached and question marks over whether a family or individual can reach that price, we have failed collectively.
If he cannot address this now, can the Minister ensure in the next budget recycle, as we move towards a new announcement in September, that all of the loopholes will be dealt with and this cohort of students will benefit? If the Minister could not do it this time, can he commit to reviewing the current system in order that students who start first year again can be included in a further scheme?
I am uncomfortable with how repeat students in general are treated by the system because there can be a whole variety of reasons somebody starts one course and wishes to move to another. That is life. Things can happen in somebody's family life and in terms of health. There are reasons people have to move. I have an openness on that.
I spoke about a once-off reduction of €1,000, which is true. We have made a permanent reduction of €500 in fees for anyone earning less than €100,000 in terms of family income. That is a mechanism I want to build on in future budgets. Could the €500 figure change or the €100,000 figures go up a little more to make sure that two public servants married to each other do not fall just outside the gross income limit? We can consider things within that formula.
SUSI needs an overhaul. We need to make sure that the means test is not too mean. I want to take another look at that in advance of the budget. An overhaul of SUSI and continually trying to reduce the fees are the two areas on which I am going to focus. We will publish a cost of education paper in the autumn.
Student Accommodation
Rose Conway-Walsh
Ceist:55. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to provide an update on student accommodation projects at advanced stages of planning that remain undeveloped due to a lack of agreement on Government support; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6963/23]
Can the Minister provide an update on the student accommodation projects at advanced stages of planning that remain undeveloped due to the lack of agreement on Government support? Will the Minister explain to us the situation regarding the students who are excluded from the rent tax credit? The Taoiseach was unable to do so earlier today. I want to be clear for once and for all what students are included in the scheme and why others are excluded. People need clarity. We cannot get the answers from Revenue.
I am happy to come back on that issue and engage with the Deputy. There needs to be absolute clarity on that. I want to deal with the student accommodation question first.
I am actively aware of and working to address the difficulties faced by students. While I understand the Deputy's question refers to a lack of agreement on Government support, I have to make the point that this is the first time in the history of the State that the Government has intervened directly, for better or worse, to part fund, with taxpayers' money, the building of student accommodation.
Fundamentally, the challenge of student accommodation is one of housing supply more generally. Obviously, the outbreak of war in Ukraine has compounded the impact of Brexit, Covid-19 and the cost of construction. We are all familiar with these things. The higher cost of finance has also contributed significantly to the overall cost of new projects. A number of higher education institutions had to pause their student accommodation projects as a result of these challenges.
To assist in restarting the projects, on 29 November 2022 I secured Government approval to develop short and medium-term policy responses to activate a supply of affordable student accommodation. These landmark policies will, for the first time, see the State providing financial support for the construction of student accommodation. They will ensure the increased availability of and promote greater access to student accommodation.
The short-term focus is on projects where planning permission is in place and designs are at an advanced stage. The Government has approved funding support to develop accommodation for students of the University of Limerick, Maynooth University and the University of Galway. These projects were not undeveloped due to a lack of agreement on Government support; rather my proposal now enables these universities to reactivate the projects that were stalled. Those projects have been approved by the Government and we need to get on with it.
My Department is also working with the Office of the Attorney General to address EU state aid requirements. As the Deputy will know, two other universities, namely, Dublin City University, DCU, and University College Dublin, UCD, had advice planning permissions and their projects have been paused. I have had two meetings with each university in the course of the last month and I expect to be able to update the Government on how I believe we can move forward on this project shortly. I am pleased to tell the Deputy that Trinity College Dublin, TCD, recently received planning approval for an accommodation project and we are now engaging with the university. I am engaging with six universities. Three of the projects are over the line in terms of funding as of November, namely, DCU, UCD and TCD. In parallel, we have allocated €1 million to the technological universities to come up with their plans.
I thank the Minister. It is vitally important that these projects are progressed sooner rather than later. The Minister knows I have pushed for a long time for public funding for student accommodation because it is integral to students participating in third level education, in particular students from rural areas.
How is the Minister making sure that the beds will be affordable once they are available? We need to make sure that it is just that a number are ring-fenced for SUSI students or whoever; they should all be affordable. That needs to be the bottom line when money is invested.
My colleague has a question on the rent tax credit. The current situation is not good enough. The requirement for landlords to be registered with the residential tenancies board, RTB, excludes many students. Students are being punished because their landlords are not registered with the RTB. We need to tease that out in another question.
The rent-a-room scheme is included in the rent credit.
It is included.
On-campus college accommodation is included and everybody else needs to be registered with the RTB.
That has always been my understanding. I am happy to clarify that and work through that with the Deputy. That was certainly my understanding but I am very happy to seek clarity that my understanding is correct but that has always been my understanding concerning the rent-a-room scheme.
Landlords need to be registered with the RTB for very good reasons, including the protection of tenants. An issue raised with me by USI and others is the importance of RTB registration. I will clarify that for the Deputy. I am happy to do that because it is not within my Department's remit.
The Deputy and I support public investment in getting these projects moving. Whatever funding we are investing, we expect that level of funding back in terms of the percentage of rooms that will charge below market rates. We are doing this to ensure we are in compliance with EU state aid rules but also to ensure that if the State invests €1, it makes sure these things are below market rent.
Affordability is crucial. As this is the first time there has been public investment in student accommodation, we must get it right from the beginning to meet the affordability criteria. There is no point in having student accommodation or any type of accommodation if it is beyond the reach of ordinary people so we must get it right.
I wanted to get clarity because this is not what has been coming from Revenue. Anyone renting under the rent-a-room scheme, whose tenancies are obviously not registered with the RTB, will get a rent tax credit. I am really glad the Minister has cleared that up. There are a few other exclusions we will talk about later.
In the interests of accuracy, the rent tax credit scheme is run by the Department of Finance so I am offering information to be helpful as I know it to the House as opposed to being accountable to the House for the administration of the rent tax credit scheme, which is done by the Revenue Commissioners.
I agree with the Deputy about affordability but I also think there is a real focus on the issue of supply. We know that even at current rates, on-campus accommodation is over-subscribed. From memory, for every one bed that was rented in Maynooth on campus, there were five or six students who would have rented the bed so I see it as a twin-track issue. It is about supply because, and I am not saying it is easy, there are students renting existing accommodation on campus so we need more supply but we also need to make sure that affordability is to the forefront, particularly in any public investment.
Technological Universities
Thomas Pringle
Ceist:56. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the way he envisages the Killybegs Tourism College developing as a campus of the Atlantic Technological University, if he has any discussions with the Atlantic Technological University around same, if he has received funding applications in relation to the further development of the campus and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7272/23]
This question concerns the Killybegs Tourism College campus of the Atlantic Technological University, ATU, the Minister's thoughts on its potential to develop within the overall remit of ATU, and whether any funding application has been made specifically in respect of that.
I acknowledge that this is an issue that Deputy Pringle raised with me on a regular basis and that the Killybegs campus is important to him and his community. I expect to be in a position to establish very shortly a regional campus support fund. There are a number of campuses that the Deputy and I believe are integral to regional and local access to third-level institutions. I would consider Killybegs to be very much in that category. To be frank, sometimes they can cost a bit more to run but there is a public good in them continuing to be there and we want to do that. We have been doing it but we have been doing it in an ad hoc manner in terms of sustainability. It would be better to get to a place where we just knew there was an annual regional campus support fund that certain institutions could draw down from and almost be guaranteed funding from. I expect to be in a position to make an announcement on that in the next couple of weeks. Without pre-empting it, I would be surprised if Killybegs is not in a position to benefit.
ATU Killybegs campus plays an important part in delivering on ATU's educational and innovation mission in Donegal and the region. It has played a particularly critical role in providing skills for the tourism sector and I understand from an update from ATU that there are plans to develop its contribution to the food science discipline within ATU.
The campus also plays a critical role in the wider economic development of Killybegs and its wider region. This is the core of the mission of technological universities in general. The Enterprise Ireland-funded Killybegs marine cluster has made significant progress since its establishment two years ago. There is significant potential for the cluster to further support the development of these marine industries with particular opportunities in the emerging wind and hydrogen sectors off the north-west coast of Ireland. ATU sees this as an area of major potential in the years ahead and one that will engage the entire university's capacities across education and training, research and enterprise development. The campus in Killybegs is regarded by ATU and my Department as a significant enabler to achieve this in partnership with local industry, Enterprise Ireland, the Western Development Commission and other stakeholders.
I am also aware that ATU is working closely with a range of partners to contribute to the development of Killybegs town and harbour. A key area of engagement is the Ocean Innovation Centre and I know that the university is working with Donegal County Council on plans for the refurbishment of Island House, which will become a digital hub and tourist office.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House.
ATU is also working with the Donegal local enterprise office and the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine supporting the development of Killybegs and south-west Donegal. The Killybegs campus has been in receipt of capital funding of €1.8 million in recent years which has enabled significant building upgrades, supporting the range of initiatives that I have outlined.
What the Minister said about the regional campus support fund is very welcome. Hopefully, Killybegs will be in a position to avail of that because it is very significant and very significant for smaller campuses. One of the problems in Killybegs over the years was trying to attract funding as a very small part of Letterkenny Institute of Technology but it is a more integral part of ATU, which is very important. That regional campus support fund will be a very useful and welcome development. I appreciate that.
As the Minister outlined, it is true that Killybegs has a tradition in culinary arts, has done very well in this area and has a very high reputation going back years when it was a CERT college. That needs to be fostered and developed and the funding could do that. Working within the marine cluster is very significant and shows the potential for the future development of the college so that is very important and I am glad that it is integral to the Minister's thinking.
I want to get to a place where the people of Killybegs and the Killybegs campus can be certain not just about their future but about the fact that they are not a peripheral part of a university but instead have a core role. The comments I have received from ATU regarding its view are very encouraging. I am also told that ATU is working with the Donegal local enterprise office and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to look at how we can support the development of Killybegs and south-west Donegal. The Killybegs campus has been in receipt of capital funding of €1.8 million in recent years. I understand, and the Deputy knows better than me, that this has enabled significant building upgrades, some of which I outlined. Crucial to all of this is the ATU strategic plan. It must under the Technological Universities Act put a plan in place for three to five years. It must be provided to me, the HEA and QQI and must be published. ATU is developing its first plan. It met with staff in Killybegs on 21 January and is due to meet the Killybegs campus again on 14 March. I know that the information I have shared with the Deputy is an indication of what ATU's thinking is as it begins to develop this plan but there is an opportunity for people in Killybegs to continue to feed in with 14 March being the next Killybegs campus meeting.
One thing that is very important to Killybegs is facilitating and enabling students to return to third-level education. I know a few people who have gone back into education. People who would not have completed secondary school have gone into further education 20 or 30 years later, which is very significant. It is also very important for Donegal because over the years, it lacked people with third-level qualifications. The ability of people to go back into further education and restart their education is very significant. The college and that particular campus have a significant role to play in that and I would like to see that continue and develop over the next couple of years.
I agree with all of that. I hope the Deputy can take some encouragement not just from what I say but, more importantly, from what ATU is telling me. It is highlighting tourism education and training as a key role for Killybegs. It acknowledges that the campus there has a long tradition of excellence in the area and talks about anticipating development in food science in Killybegs given its location and access to raw materials such as marine protein. It is also talking about the Killybegs marine cluster and its role, and that of Letterkenny Institute of Technology before that in working as part of that culture to develop further partnerships and the work they are doing with Enterprise Ireland in that area.
From what I am hearing from ATU, I am very satisfied that it is very clear on the important role Killybegs campus is playing and will play and it looks to me as though ATU is envisaging a much bigger role as it develops. The strategic plan is the first opportunity to publicly knit together the new technological university and satisfy public representatives and the people of Killybegs and Donegal of their place in this new educational landscape.
Grant Payments
Mattie McGrath
Ceist:57. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he plans to allow students in receipt of Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI, grants to earn income for weekend work without impacting their eligibility for these grants. [6964/23]
Does the Minister have any plans to allow students who are in receipt of SUSI grant funding to work at weekends? We know how important that is and he has made changes for people and families. This would enhance students’ work ethic. Moreover, families and students are stretched beyond belief by the cost-of-living crisis. Students should be allowed to work within the scope of their application without being punished.
Not to upset the Deputy, but I think I agree with him on this. His suggestion makes logical sense. There is always a balance to be struck between the importance of encouraging full-time students to focus on their studies, the integrity of their education, etc., on the one hand, and the real world, on the other. In the real world, many people work in part-time jobs, perhaps doing a shift in a bar, in a supermarket or wherever at weekends. Many people probably need to do so, and I am conscious of that.
As the Deputy noted, we have made a number of changes. The main financial support to students is the student grant scheme known as SUSI, which is means tested. Under the scheme, holiday earnings, as they are called, that is, the income a student has earned outside of term time in the previous tax year, can be deducted from the total income assessed up to a maximum level. For students in the current academic year, the maximum level is €4,500, but I increased that in the budget for the next academic year to €6,552. From September, therefore, students will be able to earn €6,552 and disregard that from their SUSI application, up from €4,500.
The point the Deputy makes is a good one. We need to go further on this. In that context, I have asked my officials to prepare a paper for me in respect of it. The idea of regular weekend work, a core component of many students' lives, is something we should reflect. We have done it for the holiday time and increased the threshold, which I am pleased we did, but I would like to see us go further. As I have stated previously in the House, I will publish an options paper in advance of the budget. However, the Deputy can take it that making progress on this is issue high on my priority list.
In the first instance, I thank the staff of SUSI - and, indeed, Geraldine in my office - who do tremendous work in assisting families. We discussed this matter at a meeting with the Minister regarding the South East Technological University in the audiovisual room last October. At that time, he stated that students were allowed to earn only €2,000 during a summer. He indicated he would increase that limit, and he did so. I acknowledge that and thank him for it. The figure was increased from €4,500 to €6,552, which was very welcome and deeply necessary. He did what he said he was going to do, so I acknowledge that and thank him for it.
I know very well some of the towns in the Minister's county, Wicklow. The hospitality industry there employs students and it works both ways. The industry needs students and the students need the work. Allowing them to get a few extra bob, pocket money or whatever takes some of the pressure off families, who are hard pressed at the moment. I am glad the Minister has asked his officials to look at this.
As the Deputy said, he was successful last year in highlighting the issue of holiday earnings. We heard him and other colleagues and acted on that because it was a sensible step to take. I do not want students to be looking at their payslips and worrying that, if they work, within reason, an additional shift at the weekend in a local bar, hotel or supermarket, it will push them out of financial support, to the point where they might decide it is not worth their while continuing with their studies, or that they cannot take the job, at a time when we have shortages especially, but not exclusively, in the hospitality sector.
This is something I am looking at. We have made the change from under €5,000 to more than €6,500, but I would like to go further. The Deputy's suggestion in this regard is reasonable and sensible. In preparing for the Estimates, I will see whether we can build on the progress we have made.
I appreciate that the Minister's officials are examining the matter. It would be wonderful for social cohesion and everything else, given jobs can instil a good work ethic in students whereby they will understand the value of work, as their employers do. In fairness, the vast majority of employers and employees have a good relationship. There may be the odd rogue employer and they should not be supported at all.
It is very positive and good for students to be able to work. I was a student at third level, and I know how it goes. I even combined a dancing career with it as well - an gnó ar fad. I am delighted the Minister is looking at this. I hope there will be good news when it comes to budget 2024.
I know my limitations, so I will not give any views or advice on dancing, a matter I will leave to the Deputy. He clearly managed to juggle quite a lot in getting through education, dancing and a job.
The serious point in all this is there is a cost-of-living challenge for many people, and I accept there is a cost to going to college and to education. I also fully accept there are many people, in both rural and urban Ireland, who are looking for somebody to work in their pub, hotel, supermarket, shop, pharmacy or wherever else. If it is possible to do both, as I think it is in a certain way such as weekend work, I do not think students should be overly penalised in the context of their SUSI grants. I will try to make more progress on this in the Estimates in the autumn.