Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. In February 2006 the governing body of Waterford Institute of Technology wrote to the Department of Education and Science requesting a review of its status under section 9 of the Universities Act 1997.

The provisions of section 9 state that the Government may appoint a body, which will include international experts, to advise the Higher Education Authority on whether, having regard to the objects and functions of a university, an educational institution should be established as a university. On the advice of the body and the recommendation of the Higher Education Authority, the Government may, by order, provide that the institution shall be a university for the purposes of this Act.

To assist the Department in its assessment of Waterford IT's application, the Minister, Deputy Hanafin, appointed Dr. Jim Port in February 2007 to provide preliminary advice on the merits of the submission by WIT. In particular, he would have regard to the national strategy for the development of higher education; implications for regional development in the south east in the context of the national spatial strategy; and any likely implications for the overall structure of higher education in Ireland. Dr. Port's report was received in late July 2007 and is currently under consideration.

Aside from consideration of the nature of the statutory review process that is provided to progress an application for designation as a university, there are also significant wider issues that must be considered in the context of a decision to institute a statutory review. For example, there have been important and relevant wider policy developments in the overall higher education sector. In particular, it is important that account is taken of the very significant recent changes in the overall legislative framework governing Irish higher education, with the commencement of the new Institutes of Technology Act 2006 on 1 February 2007. There is also a wider Government policy on foot of the review of Irish higher education carried out by the OECD in 2004, the broad thrust of which was endorsed by the Government.

A central conclusion of the OECD review was to support Ireland's strategic ambition of placing our higher education system at the front rank of the OECD in the context of the wider national objective of Ireland developing as a world-leading knowledge economy and society. A key recommendation made in the OECD report to the Government was that Ireland should retain the differentiation in mission of the university and institute of technology sectors, which it identified as a key strength of our system, and that there should be no institutional transfers into the university system for the foreseeable future.

The report also recommended that the universities and institutes of technology should be brought together under the remit of a single authority for the purpose of achieving a unified higher education strategy. It further recommended the extent of external regulation of the institutes of technology should be lightened, giving them greater managerial freedom in responding to the opportunities and challenges of supporting regional and national social and economic development.

The Institutes of Technology Act 2006 addresses significant elements of these recommendations and marks a major milestone for the sector and the development of higher education in Ireland. It provides for greater autonomy for the institutes to fulfil their missions and by bringing them within the remit of the Higher Education Authority, it supports an integrated and cohesive strategic approach to the development of higher education in line with national priorities.

The Act means, in practice, that the HEA and the institutes of technology will now engage in a way that is very similar to the way the HEA and the universities engage. The new arrangements provide for a more autonomous and strategic relationship with Government, through the HEA, reflecting the dynamic and competitive nature of the environment in which the institutes are now operating.

The Minister is cognisant of the strong support built in the south-east region around the application from Waterford IT for university status. An application for designation as a university has also been received from the Dublin Institute of Technology and my Department is currently examining the submission and supporting documentation provided by DIT. The relevant wider policy developments I have outlined above are also fundamental to the Minister's consideration of the appropriate next steps in both applications.

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