Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with much of what the Deputy said. Let us hope a year like this year never happens again. It has been an extraordinary year that nobody could predict. I welcome what the Deputy said. There has been an effort by some, not the Deputy, perhaps to pit one year group against the other. Every student and year group has experienced a difficult impact as a result of the pandemic. The class of 2020 has had a rotten year. The people of 2019 are now concerned. There has been anxiety and stress for everybody. We are all trying to alleviate that as best we can, while accepting that every year there are students who are disappointed that they do not get their choice. We are saying that they may get a second or third choice and there are always ways of moving from one choice to another choice. My strong advice is that they try to get themselves into the system. I note that over 15,000 people last year applied for health and welfare courses and 5,700 or 5,800 got places. Every year people apply for their first choice and do not get it. Some of those who accept their second choice go on to have the careers they wanted. There are always ways to get to where one wishes to go. We are continuing to do what we can to maximise the capacity but, to be honest, we are now very much at the outer limits of the additional capacity we can add to the system this year with the additional 800 places today.

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