Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)

I thank the Minister and respectfully note that her reply sums up the difficulty I have outlined. The reply includes five paragraphs dealing with the back to education allowance. I am familiar with the detail of the scheme and the eligibility criteria for the allowance. However, the response does not address the administrative quagmire I described. The final paragraph, in which the Minister refers me to the Minister for Education and Skills, sums up the difficulty I face. I have been over and back between the two Departments for several weeks. The difficulty I highlighted is that if applicants are to achieve the required points, they must have a masters degree while those with a masters degree are not eligible for the back to education allowance.

I will not forward a copy of the Minister's reply to the person who asked me to raise this matter because it is a bureaucratic response that describes the current system but fails to address the administrative quagmire I have described. I have been in touch with the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Social Protection on this matter. The specific case I raise is a typical example of an issue that falls between two stools. The conditions attached to a scheme in one Department have resulted in an individual failing to meet the criteria set by another Department. What is required is a ministerial decision. As the criteria are not statutorily based, there is room for discretion. I will pursue this matter further because the response does not address the anomaly I have raised and runs counter to the spirit of Government policy, that is, to get people back into the classroom.

I want to see movement on this issue because the case I raise is not an isolated one. There are bound to be others who are being prevented from availing of reasonable entitlements as a result of bureaucratic anomalies arising from two Departments having a role in one broad area.

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