Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)

The witnesses are very welcome. I read their submissions. I thank them for their sometimes depressing but also very measured submissions.

I will outline where I am coming from. I am probably the only non-academic on this committee. I went to school in Boyle, County Roscommon. We had our 45th school reunion recently. This was the first one in 45 years, since we left in 1980. Ireland was a different place in 1980. Sixty young boys left that school. It certainly was not an Ivy League college, but I have great memories of it. It had great teachers and most of the guys I went to school with are very thankful and happy about the school they went to. There was no uniform at the time, but nobody went to university. Out of 60 people who left that school, three or four went to university. One went to Trinity, and we were absolutely delighted. We have come an awful long way in 45 years.

At the time anybody who got into university was very privileged and probably came from the professional class as a doctor's or lawyer's son, or was absolutely brilliant. We are in a much better place than when I was younger. At the time, people either went to university, went to the regional technical colleges of which Sligo was one, got a job in the public service, worked on the land, worked in a business or emigrated, and most people emigrated. I am really thankful to have normal, confident and intelligent people like the witnesses representing the future of our country.

I am very proud that the first university north of the Dublin-to-Galway line is in Sligo. I am very proud to have played a role in establishing the ATU and bringing in St. Angela's, where my wife is a lecturer, as part of the ATU. The witnesses outlined the accommodation issue. What happened with Milligan Court and Benbulben Court in Sligo was an absolute disgrace. The developer put the two fingers up to the local authority and to the ATU students, and got away with it despite every effort from a legal point of view and from a planning point of view. That should never be allowed to happen again. I pay tribute to the students union in ATU in Sligo whose campaign for the rent-a-room scheme has helped.

The witnesses are absolutely right that we need an extra 500 or 600 rooms. It is not just that. Sometimes we talk about perfection. I do not care who provides the rooms. Government needs a major involvement. I do not care if people make some money out of it, but we need student units. We have talked for a long time about bringing in what is perfection - we want this and we want that. I want good-quality accommodation which will help the housing crisis in towns like Sligo, Letterkenny and Athlone.

I thank the witnesses for giving their views today. They spoke about the end of the two-tier funding system. That is absolutely critical. The problem has built up over 20 or 30 years. I will not call it discrimination but, let us be honest, in third level education there is snobbery. The "Ivy League" colleges around the country, south of the Dublin-to-Galway line, still look at ATU Sligo as if it is not good enough.

I think legislation to protect digs and safeguard existing student housing is very important. We also need to accelerate the delivery. I do not care how it is done. Some people have different views on how it should be done, but I say "just bloody well do it".

I am going to get away from housing and mention something I am very angry about. I am very proud that ATU Sligo now has pharmacy and veterinary courses. However, about three days before the start of September, the pharmacy course in Sligo was announced. It makes one wonder what went on here. Did they make ATU Sligo go through the hoops here? I feel there is still a snobbery in third level education. However, I am very proud of the ATU in Sligo, Letterkenny and the north west, the first university north of the Dublin-to-Galway line. You never know, when I get out of politics, I might even do an adult education course.