Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

To answer the Deputies Farrell, I have a clear view on the cost of education and how we can never let it be a barrier. This will involve the reduction in fees, improvements in grants and engaging on both issues through normal budgetary processes. I have been clear in the Funding the Future paper that we published last year that fees and grants should be considered each year in the round in terms of how we can best support students.

Deputy Alan Farrell spoke about the SUSI grant scheme. It needs to be overhauled. When it was introduced approximately a decade ago, it largely met the cost of going to college. The world has changed since then, though, and there are still poverty traps. My priority with SUSI and student grants is to eliminate those traps. For example, we tell people to study part time, but if they do, we do not let them access SUSI.

You could be a lone parent, trying to go to college and hold down a job and the only way college works for you is part-time. We need to make sure such people can access SUSI. It is about trying to get that part-time students' access to SUSI; alongside student accommodation. In the Deputy’s own area, Dublin City University, DCU, has approval for more than 400 student accommodation beds, which thanks to taxpayer investment of over €40 million, will make a real difference.

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