Mr. Jim Miley:

The only communication was in the Oireachtas where the Minister confirmed it would cost an extra €81 million a year for a €1,000 drop in the student contribution. There has been no other engagement on that. The question then arises that if there is a reduction, there then needs to be a commensurate filling of that gap by the State, in addition to filling the gap that is already there.

The needs of students must be paramount here. In our submission we have made it very clear we believe the student supports in the form of SUSI grants must be a significant part of the package as well. We believe the supports should go to where they are needed most. I said in my submission that it is unacceptable in 2022 in Ireland that a student’s educational future is determined by his or her postcode. Therefore, the reform package must address that issue also within the overall-----