Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Independent)

Yes. I know the Minister is aware of this but I put it to him that a 50% drop will wipe out our system for the next ten, 20 or 30 years. Will the Minister consider reintroducing student fees? I know that is a very personal issue for him. The report from the Geary Institute in UCD suggests that measure has not done what I believe the Minister intended it to do, which was to improve the quality of access. My concern is that if we do not reintroduce fees, and it must be backed by zero or low interest long-term loans, as is the model in other countries, our students will be left in nominally free education in institutions that are falling in standards. I do not ask for that easily. It is not a pleasant political message for anybody in this Chamber to send. My concern is that without something like that our students will be left in second rate institutions. Will the Minister conduct a cost benefit analysis of that and perhaps consider introducing fees in one or two institutions to determine how the students, and the institutions, react?

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