Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I fully accept that the wrong paperwork can sometimes be submitted or that additional information may be required. However, the student to whom I refer submitted the necessary paperwork two months ago and it was only this week that he received a letter indicating that additional information was required.

It is not solely down to the students. A student may be unaware that the paperwork with the application is not complete. I know of a case where the short form of a birth certificate was submitted instead of the long form. As a consequence, the decision to offer a grant was delayed. A number of issues need to be ironed out. I am aware that USI has proposed a clearer tracking system to enable students to follow the progress of their application and a more user-friendly website. I have been told by those using the website that it is not user-friendly. The Unions of Students in Ireland wants better briefing and training of the help desk workers because on many occasions the information is not readily available to callers.

I have no doubt that the SUSI system is a much better process and I welcome it wholeheartedly. However, flaws still exist and there is an opportunity between now and the next application period to deal with those flaws in the system.

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