Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The proposed technological universities are quickly becoming a disaster area. I think the Department is taking a hands-off approach. I know the Higher Education Authority is the body responsible for overseeing and implementing that policy, but the proposal in regard to Carlow Institute of Technology is pretty much dead in the water. I do not think it will happen.

There is growing concern in regard to the merger of the ITs in Cork and Tralee as there is a difference of opinion between the governing bodies and the staff. The Labour Relations Commission is now coming into play. The members are about to balloted on the issue of a technological university. There is a major flaw in respect of the whole process. The proposal for the merger of Cork and Tralee is now heading into stage four on the back of an expert panel report that made a number of recommendations. A number of concerns were raised about the financing model, advising the governing bodies to give further consideration to their income streams, because in the period between the merged entity being established and the awarding of technological university status by the HEA, they would need funding. There is work to be done on that.

The expert panel also identified the work to be done on the governance structure which is being proposed by the governing bodies of both Cork and Tralee ITs. My concern is that there seems to be an impression that the governing bodies will press ahead with what they originally proposed, in spite of a number of recommendations being put forward by the expert panel. Mr. Tom Boland, the chief executive of the HEA, set out clearly in a letter to the governing bodies that the recommendations in the report of the expert panel are an integral part of the process. He said in a roundabout way that unless the recommendations were taken on board, incorporated and implemented, it would be very difficult for the status of technological university to be granted to the new merged entity.

I do not know if the proposed merger of Carlow IT and Waterford IT can progress. There is an impression that Waterford will pull out of the process. The proposed merger of Cork IT and Tralee IT is heading in a similar way and there is even a possibility of industrial action. I do not know how to resolve the issue but I do know that the Department must focus on it. The policy on the proposed mergers is crumbling.