Alex White (Dublin South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

As the Deputy acknowledged, All Hallows is a private college. It is a fine institution and the Deputy did a great job describing it. I know All Hallows and its history very well because I grew up just a stone's throw from it. Everything the Deputy said about it, its history and its contribution to education is absolutely correct.

As I noted earlier, the Department provides the college with specific funding under the free fees initiative in respect of a small cohort of the student population. I am not sure whether I fully grasp the point the Deputy made in the context of the relationship with DCU and the cap in respect of All Hallows. I understand the point about the cap but I must point out that it was not reached in any of the past three years.

The cap on numbers in respect of which the free fees would be reimbursed was 130 in 2013-14 and 119 students availed of it. The cap has been 130 for the past three years and the numbers who availed of the scheme were 119 in 2013-14, 121 in 2012-13 and 103 in 2011-12 while the number was 112 in 2010-11 when the cap was 136. The Deputy may have been making a point in respect of a possible connection with DCU.

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