Peter Kelly (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Acting Chairman.

The Bill gives VECs the power to carry out inquiries, which will strengthen the process of pursuing fraudulent claims, although up to now I have definitely not heard of any fraudulent claims. Provision is made for the recovery of debt and the sharing of acquired personal information to verify information supplied as part of the application process. The existing definition of "spouse" as it pertains to married couples and cohabiting heterosexual couples is retained pending the review of social welfare schemes for compliance with the Equality Acts. A change is to be made in the residency requirements in respect of eligibility for maintenance grants. In addition, all students must now meet the new requirement of having spent three out of the last five years resident in the European Union, EEA or Switzerland, rather than the previous requirement of one year in the European Union, to qualify for the fees grant. This will enable those who do not meet the residency requirement in the State but meet all other requirements for a maintenance grant to qualify on the basis of EU, EEA or Swiss residence for a fees only grant.

The Bill sets out the categories of nationalities that qualify for a grant as EU, EEA or Swiss nationals or those with official refugee status or other persons entitled to the rights and privileges specified in section 3 of the Refugee Act. It also enables the Minister to prescribe additional categories of non-EU or non-EEA nationals, subject to consideration of any or all of the matters laid down in the legislation. It further provides that the detailed conditions of the new unified scheme of student grants, regarding such matters as eligibility, means of applicants and classes of grant, may be prescribed by regulation.

The Minister has the power to prescribe different categories of student, including dependent, independent, mature and tuition students. This will enable the Minister to extend the current definition of an independent student if there are compelling reasons, as well as the resources to do so. The Minister will have the power to address by regulation the current provision, whereby all students under 23 years are assessed with reference to their parents' income, even when they have been living and continue to live independently of their parents and have been self-supporting for a number of years. The Bill will provide for drawing up a scheme of grants by way of regulation, including the power to make regulations governing the assessment of means to determine the eligibility of a student. The provisions will limit the assessment of means to income only.

The Bill gives automatic approval to institutions that come under the universities, institutes of technology and Dublin Institute of Technology legislation, are in receipt of exchequer funding for the provision of PLC courses or are institutions in the EU that are financed essentially out of public funds.

The Minister has power to prescribe other educational institutions in the State that provide higher education and training subject to principles and policies set down in the Bill, including the resources available for the provision of student support, having consulted with the Higher Education Authority and having obtained the consent of the Minister for Finance.

It requires approved institutions to draw up and implement access plans and equality policies. This underpins and supports Government policy to improve equality of access to further and higher education for under represented groups. It also provides that only full-time courses provided by approved institutions can be deemed to be approved courses.

The Bill provides the Minister with the power to prescribe approved courses and sets out the matters that the Minister shall have regard to for the purposes of prescribing a course. These include the nature and level of the qualification to be awarded to the student on completion of the course, the educational institution that provides the course and whether it leads to a higher education and training award or a further education and training award.

While the Bill limits the approval of postgraduate courses to courses within the State, the provisions, as currently drafted, enable the Minister to prescribe postgraduate courses in Northern Ireland as approved courses for which both maintenance and fees grants can be payable. I welcome that Irish citizens who find a course is not available here will have the opportunity to study that subject elsewhere.

Regarding transition arrangements and implementation plans, the changes in the eligibility requirements and the administrative arrangements will only apply to new entrants to the grant scheme following the commencement of the Act. It is currently envisaged that commencement will allow for the new scheme to come into operation for the 2009 — 2010 academic year. The timing of the commencement of the Act will depend on the satisfactory conclusion of discussions with the VECs on the administrative arrangements for the new scheme.

I thank the Acting Chairman, Deputy Charlie O'Connor, for his courtesy and the good job he is doing on behalf of Tallaght, which, I believe is his constituency.

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