Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We need to recognise that grade inflation is only part of the story. The fact that CAO points are going up is also about how many places are available. Every year more students are sitting the leaving certificate, but as the Minister has admitted so many times, third-level education is not adequately funded. He must take responsibility for that. His party has been in government since 2011. This has led to an increase in the number of courses that are cheaper to deliver rather than an expansion of in-demand courses that reflect the real needs of the economy and society. I do not blame the individual colleges. This is how the funding model is set up by the Government. The Government has announced thousands of additional places in the past few years, yet it has had little effect on the pressure of the CAO points,-----

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