Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

I thank the Minister for her reply. There are effectively four increases that come into effect as a consequence of the budget. First, will the Minister change the name of the third level student contribution to what it used to be, namely, fees? There are fees for postgraduates and night students, so why have a different nomenclature for the financial cost? It should be called "fees". The Minister has abolished free fees.

Second, has the Minister thought out the implications in regard to €50 charge for primary schools? To my knowledge, this is the first time primary school children have been brought into the free transport area and I would like to get the Minister's response. What are the implications? Will this generate more traffic in rural Ireland, for example, where parents may avoid the €50 charge and begin driving to school, which is counter-productive? The Minister of State discussed this at a committee meeting. At second level the tipping of the balance was that in some cases there were more cars in the car park than there was space for the bus to arrive. Will this be fully evaluated now? If the cost of providing free transport at second level drives people into their own cars, should it not be fundamentally reviewed? Is a cost benefit analysis being done ? The matter of the 5% cut arises in a subsequent question and I will deal with it then.

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