Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

On page 114 of the programme for Government there is a commitment to tackle inequality in the third level sector based on socioeconomic background, but the income assessment criteria for the SUSI grant is based on 2019. Many families have seen huge changes in their financial situation since the start of this year, which the Taoiseach will appreciate. There are workers without employment for the first time in their lives. The assessment criteria does not correspond with the reality of people's lives and they need to be reviewed.

I would also like the Taoiseach to address an anomaly in the system. The case of Ms X in Laois is one example. She is a married woman of 23 years of age who set up home with her partner, now her husband, for five a half years and lives totally independent of her parents but she is still being assessed as a dependant child despite having supplied reams of information to show that she is living independently with her husband. There is an anomaly in the system that the departmental officials need to address.

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