Mr. Fiachra ? Luain:

I will say what I think and then pass over to Ms Monserrat Martinez Murillo. Basically, there should not be a role for agents. The rules say that moneys that come from outside of the State or Europe must be placed in escrow accounts until people are here and all their applications are made. Agents allow schools to circumvent the ILEP rules and get around the Department of Justice's own rules. Anyone can set up as an agent. Agents are not registered or regulated. Moneys are paid in riyals or pesos, for example, and they are sometimes kept in country but then agreements are made with the schools here. Sometimes schools have a nominal other entity which is separate from the entity in Ireland but moneys are paid and kept in the original country and then business is done. It opens the door to money laundering and other sorts of abuse. Most importantly, it means that students' investment and money, which very often are the result of years of saving or the sales of cars and houses, are not safe. In the event of an emergency, it is they who take all of the risk but none of the reward. Ms Monserrat Martinez Murillo might talk a little about her experience.