Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome both witnesses here today. I acknowledge, as a Deputy who represents Donegal, the immense role played by both of them in being leaders of education in the region, and particularly leading on the cross-border dimension. I am delighted that both of them are here today to talk about the practice that they have developed. As has been rightly said, this collaboration is a benchmark for Departments and certainly in the North-South dimension. I thank them for all that they do.

As both witnesses know, when one looks at the whole picture of the island of Ireland, one can clearly see that all of the universities are located in the cities of Belfast, Cork, Dublin, Galway and Limerick. Consequently, there is historic frustration and anger because a region with approximately half a million people does not have a dedicated university. I say that not to denigrate the fantastic education provided at the Magee campus in Derry and the Letterkenny Institute of Technology, LyIT. Thanks to the two witnesses and others,that frustration and anger is being undone, which is welcome. I ask them to lay out how that is being undone. Obviously with the Connacht-Ulster alliance, there will be one technological university for the region comprised of GMIT, Institute of Technology Sligo, IT Sligo, and LyIT.

With a cross-border partnership all the elements of a university are finally coming together. How can the witnesses assure us that the courses provided are complementary rather than competing? I ask them to please spell out in more detail how they co-operate. A medical school is on the way for the Magee campus. How can one ensure that these places of education will provide a full array of education that will attract all the investment and encourage all he matching job creation in the region? I seek assurance on how all that will work.

I have talked about the exciting plans by both educational institutions. Can the Irish Government do more to co-fund the Magee campus? Can Stormont and the British and Irish Governments jointly fund projects in both the Magee campus and Letterkenny? I seek feedback on how Stormont and the British and Irish Governments can improve their financial offering to these educational institutions.