Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising these matters and for acknowledging that we have put many extra places into the college system. It is our job to keep those places as we know the demographic pressures that will come on this sector. I welcome his comments on apprenticeships and we could do with learning from the Deputy's expertise on the matter.

The Deputy is correct in his comments on Brexit. Overwhelmingly, Brexit will be negative for this island and the European Union but we must look for any opportunities we can find in that very difficult environment. The attraction of international students is one, although the pandemic has put the cat among the pigeons. As we move beyond it, we will have a new international students strategy and will consider what the future of a sustainable model for international students in our country will look like. The benefits of international students range beyond the monetary, and it is about diversity in education as well.

There will be a chance to reboot the North-South relationship and do much more with it. For example, I am excited by proposals from Science Foundation Ireland that we could have a cross-Border research centre on infectious diseases, and what an incredible dividend that would bring to public health learning and North-South relations. The members have heard me speak about cross-Border universities and the idea that we would work on an all-island basis if such universities did not recognise borders. I have chatted to Deputy Conway-Walsh about some of these ideas and I have no doubt we will do that again.

We have more work to do on the Erasmus programme. My first priority is to ensure every student in Northern Ireland, who has a right to be Irish and be European, can continue to access the Erasmus programme. Just before coming to this committee hearing, I signed off on a proposal in that regard and I will consult with Government colleagues on that. The proposal is that we would continue to provide access to Erasmus programmes for students in the North.

I have had meetings with the UK science minister on the research piece. It is fair to say the UK is continuing to negotiate on where it will fit. I hope it remains a part of the EU research infrastructure but even if it does not, we must look at how we could strengthen our bilateral relationships. I want to maximise how we draw down on international funds and opportunities for research. This will involve putting more boots on the ground, to be frank, locating more people in Brussels and working with European institutions. My new Department will be doing quite a lot in that regard.