Maria Bailey (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will be quick. On the funding model, I fundamentally disagree that parents who can afford to pay slightly more should do so. In Dún Laoghaire, the area which I represent, many non-fee-paying schools are at capacity and many parents have no option apart from sending their children to a private school. Many make massive sacrifices to do so. The fact that families send their children to a private school does not automatically mean they can afford to pay more than other families to send their children to college. I understand the witnesses' thinking in that regard but we are a long way away from that being feasible.

On student accommodation, we must recognise the Government policy that has enabled its construction, including fast-track planning permission, European Investment Bank funding and the low-cost funding model. It is a long-term investment. It is not a quick fix but, rather, an ongoing income for colleges. I acknowledge the maintenance cost involved and I agree that the cost of construction has increased. What income is realised from the accommodation being let in the summer? How much of it is let in the summer? Is that money ring-fenced? Does it go to the same area as the student accommodation income?

I agree with Deputy Lisa Chambers on this issue. The Joint Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government has been discussing this issue since the Thirty-second Dáil was convened. Representatives of several student unions appeared before the committee. It did not come as a shock to anybody that student accommodation was included in the rent pressure zones. We must recognise the security that gave to tenants and that the colleges came with us on that.

On the cost of student accommodation, the newly-built accommodation is of exceptionally good quality. I visited a significant amount of it. Whether they are four-bed or six-bed units with communal areas, the standard is very high. However, that comes at a cost. Do the witnesses envisage the cost of that accommodation decreasing in light of the anticipated increase in supply?