Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 4:

In page 10, line 31, to delete "an institute, a merged institute or a technological university" and substitute "an institute or a technological university".

Amendment No. 4 is a consequential technical amendment which deletes the term "merged institute" and substitutes "applicant institute". An applicant institute is defined in section 26 as two or more institutes that jointly may apply to the Minister for an order under section 46. The technical amendments in this group arise because of the changes to the application process for designation as a technological university. This approach was decided upon following consultations with stakeholders, some of whom had expressed concern that institutes of technology could merge, subsequently fail to obtain technological university status and then effectively become stuck in that process.