Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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To reiterate, there was a vacuum or uncertainty in January. I had to move really quickly to provide certainty to the parents in Northern Ireland. I met one of the mothers in Belfast two weeks ago. She said they had been in a very bad place because they did not know whether the student contribution fee of €3,000 was going to be protected.

What will happen in the following two years is a reasonable and fair question. It was asked in the Dáil where I answered the Deputy's question. I will be happy to work with him to ensure we bring that certainty to the matter in the future. In the first week of January I had work to do for September. I did it to bring that certainty to the matter. If the question is whether we have to move on from it, I am happy to do so.

The Horizon 2020 programme is within the remit of the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation. Nevertheless, Erasmus+ is an important programme, under which more than 30,000 students are studying in the United Kingdom. Discussions are ongoing on the matter which will not require any legislative change.

On the issue related to the Middletown Centre for Autism which was raised by Deputy Jan O'Sullivan in the context of Brexit, the Department of Education in Northern Ireland is anxious to protect the work of the centre and the service it provides for children on the island of Ireland. I share its determination in that regard.