Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)

The aforementioned Deputies have outlined the facts and figures very well so I will not repeat too many of their points. While listening to the Minister's speech, I had to agree with her about the improvements that have taken place in the higher education sector, especially in terms of the numbers of people involved in higher education. It is important if we are to continue to develop as a world-leading economy and to have high quality graduates and researchers that our higher education system is in the front rank. No one disagrees with that but we must also stress that there is no point in having a fourth or PhD level when, in some areas, our education system is more akin to that of the second world or the former Soviet Bloc countries rather than the developed world.

In that context, I await with interest the report due out tomorrow and has been touted in today's newspapers, that is, the review of higher education in 2004. Some of the findings have already been leaked to the media and show, for example, that in the more prosperous areas of Dublin, 90% of students attend third level while only 20% in poor areas of west Dublin do so, which no doubt includes a sizeable segment of my constituency.

Despite the improvements overall, we still have this discrepancy. When the economy is booming we should not have inequality to the extent we do now. We still have approximately 5,000 people dropping out before or just after their junior certificate and one in seven students entering second level from primary not having proper reading, writing and mathematical skills. That is a problem we must address because such people will never get to attend to third level if they leave school early. However, opportunities do not exist for them because of the lack of investment in the further education sector.

We know that there were 21 main recommendations out of a larger number in the McIver report. I have already raised this issue with the Minister of State, Deputy de Valera, as have other Deputies, and the response has always been that we must take one recommendation at a time. The reality is that the €48 million required is a drop in the ocean compared with the amount of money the Government has wasted. Deputy Crowe has given a number of examples already and I wish to provide another one from my constituency which has one of the lowest thirdlevel participation rates of the disadvantagedareas.

Close to areas such as Quarryvale in north Clondalkin in my constituency is the M50. That motorway is being widened and will cause significant congestion over the years when it is finished. Originally, the cost was to be €350 million. That rose to €800 million and the Taoiseach said recently that it will now cost €1 billion. In that context, €650 million will be wasted but a small fraction of that would implement all of the recommendations in the McIver report.

I put it to the Minister and Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science that they are not pushing the issue sufficiently with their Cabinet colleagues. There is a lot more to be saved in terms of this economy by implementing the McIver report and spending money on further and adult education than in throwing money at a white elephant road project that will still be congested when it is completed.

It has been found that people with literacy problems are three times more likely to be out of work and to be the lowest earners, only half as likely to be active in their communities and one fifth as likely to participate in adult education. A cost benefit analysis must be carried out on expenditure on education. The Minister admitted, when referring to the High Scope Perry pre-school project in reply to a Dáil question, that investment in adult and higher education for those in the system and in primary and pre-school education for those coming into the system could pay for itself if it results in people earning more, paying more taxes, being less of a drag on the State in terms of social welfare and not costing the State because they are less likely to go to prison. These are all factors that must be seriously analysed. In that context, I cannot see why €48 million for implementing the McIver report, another €100 million for investing in other areas, as well as an increase from 2% to 5% for adult education is not possible. If we invest in our people, we will get that investment back and save the State money in the long term.

See this speech in context