Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

Before I begin, I want to say how very sorry I am to hear of the death of Brother Kevin Crowley. I offer condolences to everybody who loved him. Brother Kevin's work at the Capuchin Day Centre is the stuff of legend. He really was a champion for the poor and for everyone who fell on hard times, without judgment and without exception. He lived for others and he absolutely changed lives. We will all feel his loss very greatly. Ireland has lost a great son. Indeed, his beloved Cork has lost a true legend. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Yesterday, I was contacted by a mother at her wits' end. She has two daughters in college. She told me that she and her husband were just about able to cover the costs of that. She talked about the pressure they were under to pay for the accommodation. She likened it to a second mortgage, so this mother could not believe her ears when the Minister, Deputy Lawless, announced that the Government would hike up student fees by €1,000. She asked where in the name of God did the Government think she and her husband would find an extra €2,000. Thousands of students and their parents are in the same position with the worry, stress and uncertainty of having to come up with that money.

Yesterday, my colleague An Teachta Pearse Doherty twice asked the Minister a very simple question about what students and their families would be asked to pay. Will it be €2,000 or €3,000? Twice, the Minister refused to answer. When asked by reporters yesterday whether a fee hike was coming, Micheál Martin was dismissive. He talked about budgeting processes instead of being upfront about the bills students and their parents would face in a few weeks. He was clear on one thing, namely, that there would be no cost-of-living package. Obviously, the fees are going up.

The Tánaiste, Simon Harris, could not have been more cavalier. He said that if he was the parent of a child going to college today, he would do what happened last year, the year before and the year before that. He would pay in instalments and see where the budget brought us to. How out of touch can you get? We are not talking about a few quid here. We are talking about €1,000 per student. That is a lot of money for families. Parents cannot take a wait-and-see approach. They and students need to know now what they will be paying. The Government is making the choice to hike student fees at a time when working people and families are under pressure with soaring prices, hit left, right and centre with increases in the cost of food, energy bills, childcare, petrol, diesel and, as the Government well knows, rent. Prices are through the roof, yet now the Government wants to add a €1,000 hike in college fees into the mix.

That is the flippant and casual attitude of a Government that has no problem reinstating big pay packages for top-brass executives at bailed-out banks or doling out cushy pay increases for its record number of Ministers of State, but pleads the poor mouth when it comes to students and their families. It is a tale as old as time when it comes to Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.

Caithfidh an Rialtas a bheith ionraic le mic léinn agus lena dteaghlaigh. Cad a bheidh mar tháille coláiste acu i mí Mheán Fómhair? An mbeidh costas €2,000 nó €3,000 air?

The Minister needs to be upfront with students and their families. Dancing on the head of a pin, dodging and refusing to give a straight answer is, frankly, not acceptable. I will again ask the straightforward question and I would like an answer, please. When students are paying their fees for the 2025-26 academic year, will the cost be €2,000 or €3,000?

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