Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is appropriate that we congratulate the colleges now that they are reopening. I am sure this weekend will be a long weekend for them. I am sure they will all be working, with the CAO offers out next week, to get colleges ready, whether it is for online education or otherwise. I also welcome what the Minister said about fees. Several constituents have contacted me to say that they cannot afford full fees this year because as students could not work this summer, they could not save. Communication is important.

SUSI grants need to be reformed. I have dealt with appeals over the years and it is hard to win an appeal for a SUSI grant. This year, we need information on how someone can qualify, how much they can qualify for and exactly what the mechanism is and how much one needs to earn. It is all about earning to qualify for one's grant at the end of the day. Information on that will be crucial. Is this ready? Can the Minister give us information on that so that we can give it to people who have contacted us? Families have contacted me. One woman rang me last week and said that she did not qualify for the grant for her child a few years ago, and she does not know if she will qualify this year. She thinks her child will be working from home and in college. She feels as if she is going into a restaurant and paying for a full steak, but is only getting half a steak. We need to be careful about how we handle this. Students who need and want to go to college need to get that chance. It would be a disaster if we do not have something in place to give those students that chance to get to college so that their dream can come true. That is something that they always want. I will look for information on that and think it is important.

I welcome the increase in student access funding and the provision for laptops. I know the Institute of Technology Carlow got more than €530,000. I understand that, across the board, many colleges will be doing much online teaching. The Minister mentioned capital grants. IT Carlow got €1 million in capital fund. The most important funding that the Minister has given this year, which I really want to welcome, is the support for mental health and well-being. I know IT Carlow got €240,000. I am proud of IT Carlow. It is an excellent college. I have been working with the Minister, other Ministers and other Deputies in the south east on the technological university, which will be important for the south east.

I have a problem. We have another excellent third level college in Carlow and it did not get funding for either laptops or capital works. How many more third level colleges such as the one in Carlow did not get funding because they do not meet the criteria? It is unfair. We have excellent colleges doing excellent work, getting this crucial investment for laptops, capital works and well-being.

There are other excellent third level colleges that are not meeting the criteria. Do these other third level students not deserve laptops? Why are they not getting the laptops? Courses will be going online now and it is so unfair to have some colleges getting it and some not. I would like an answer on that. I will then come back to the Minister with my other questions.

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