John Connolly (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I welcome that. Again, it contributes to the impression I have of the Minister in terms of innovation and what he is bringing to this Department to make sure more people can access third level education and that no opportunity is denied.

To reiterate, there is some inequity in that household income is assessed irrespective of a student's adjacency or proximity to the third level institution. That is something we can look at it. We must recognise it is going to cost some people more . I acknowledge that we recognise that in the provision of the grant, and I fully welcome what the Minister has outlined about increasing the income threshold and the grant this year. That is all very progressive and I hope we continue in that vein, but there is something worth examining in the household income threshold for me in comparison with somebody who does not live as near to a third level institution.

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