Mr. Karl Byrne:

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions' education sector group thanks the committee for the invitation to participate in this very welcome debate on future funding of the higher education sector. The congress group comprises a range of unions representing staff across all levels of the sector, including IFUT, the Teachers Union of Ireland, TUI, Fórsa, SIPTU and Unite. It is our view that equal access must be a cornerstone of our education sector as a whole, otherwise we will simply exacerbate divisions and inequality in Irish society. A 2018 UNICEF report showed that teenage children of lower income parents in Ireland harboured little or no ambition to attend third level. Meanwhile, a 2019 HEA study revealed that children from affluent backgrounds were ten times more likely to score high CAO points than those from less affluent areas. An overriding goal of official policy must be to remove all barriers and impediments to access, and the further and higher education sector can play a crucial role in this process. However, this can only occur if the critical issue of funding is resolved in a sustainable manner, in order to maximise educational opportunity and participation for all.

There is broad consensus on the value of investment in higher education and the fact that the returns on the investment are public, political, economic and social. Indeed, the OECD has pointed out that as countries across the globe respond to the challenges of digital, technological and environmental transition, higher education has become pivotal to progress, given its key role in the formation of intellectual capital. Similar conclusions were reached by the Nevin Economic Research Institute in research carried out for the congress education sector group. This stressed the role of higher education as "a producer of increased skills and capacities in the population, and as a site of research and development". The Nevin institute warned that cuts to spending on higher education were self-defeating, as lower investment has a negative impact on long-term growth and living standards. Given the consensus around this issue, the question arises as to how we have arrived at a situation where we have the highest cost barriers to student participation in the EU and among the lowest spend per student.

These barriers include fees and significant increases in the cost of living for students and working families, and in particular the failure to deliver on secure and genuinely affordable accommodation. The core of the problem lies in the sharp fall in official funding over the last decade. Thus, between 2012 and 2016, total State funding for higher education fell by almost 15%. This reduction is in contrast to comparator states, where funding has always been consistently higher. In 2014, the spend on third level here amounted to 1.1% of GDP, compared with an OECD average of 1.5%. If we strip out private funding sources, Ireland's public spend on third level was just 0.8%, while the OECD average was 1.1%. It is now six years since the expert group on future funding for higher education delivered its recommendations and these trends have worsened since then. In 2019, the Parliamentary Budget Office concluded that funding per undergraduate student - full time, part time, remote and FETAC - was 50% lower than in 2008. In our experience, the funding shortfall has contributed to a worsening of employment conditions and a rise in precarious work, with research by TASC and NERI strongly suggesting the problem is most acute in the higher education sector. It has also sparked a creeping privatisation, and a more dominant role for private funding in our universities, a trend that undermines higher education as a public good.

In conclusion, equality of access must be the cornerstone of our entire education system. Education is an essential public good and must be funded accordingly. This includes a properly resourced and publicly-funded higher education sector. Crucially, this must be accompanied by engagement with all stakeholders, in order to develop a coherent and shared vision for the future of the sector. Indeed, the necessity for engagement is a key lesson from the experience of the Covid pandemic in the sector. I stress that this should be the first step, not the last one, once a decision is made on future funding. The annual cost of attending college has become almost prohibitive and there should be a full reassessment of the grant system to ensure it covers costs and that grants are awarded where they are most needed in a fully transparent manner. Part-time work and temporary work have a legitimate role at third level, but widespread insecurity of employment will harm teaching and educational standards. This applies to academic and support staff throughout the institutions, all of whom play a key role in the delivery of education and the proper functioning of the sector. I thank members for their time. We are more than happy to answer any questions the committee may have.