Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

If the report recommends income-contingent student loans on the Australian model or another model, is that something the Minister would support in the context of the next few weeks, the general election and so on? The Minister's budget for the sector for 2016 is €1.45 billion for current expenditure, with a miserable €20 million on the capital side. Is it not the case that funding has been deliberately constrained and that this sector has done the most badly among all economic and social sectors in terms of funding from the Government? We have seen the rankings of Irish universities tumbling down the QS and Times Educational Supplementlists. Our highest-ranking university is Trinity College, Dublin, at No. 78. UCD, my own alma mater, is heading down to the 150 mark. Before the Minister and her predecessor, Deputy Quinn, took office, these colleges were in the 20s and 30s and very highly rated. Has that not been part of her legacy?

The Government has done absolutely nothing in the area I represent. Dublin 10 and Dublin 17 have the lowest take-up of third level education of all electoral areas in the State, at less than 20%, as well as having the lowest provision for third level education. The Government has done absolutely nothing to change that or to encourage additional people to go to third level. Is it not the case that, unfortunately, the Government's administration of third level been a disaster and another aspect of the fallout of the austerity years? We need a fundamental change. By the way, my own approach is to base funding on progressive taxation and progressive income tax.

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