Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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11. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his proposals to ensure the adequate provision of accommodation for students. [54974/25]

Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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My question to the Minister is in relation to the provision of accommodation for students. When students got their CAO results and started college this year, there was huge excitement about being sent off to college and everything. However, stress was induced a few days later with the experience of trying to acquire accommodation, which was impossible because of the increased cost of third level, in particular, and the cost of accommodation at campuses, which is not always available. Worryingly, we now see that students signed leases before the CAO offers were made just to ensure they had accommodation. What are the Minister's proposals in relation to accommodation?

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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This is something I am very aware of and very keen to make progress on. It is multi-faceted; it is not a one-size-fits-all solution. My immediate and short-term focus has been on enabling stalled projects to proceed by tackling the viability issues. The €100 million in the short-term activation programme has been put aside for this purpose. Under that programme, some beds are reserved for priority students under the national access plan at reduced rents on a 30% basis. Therefore, 30% of beds are ring-fenced for SUSI recipients for a period of 30 years. Measures like that are very important in any State-funded accommodation.

As part of that programme, I approved funding of €67 million just last month to enable UCD to enter into contracts. Indeed, I turned the sod with President Orla Feely out there a few weeks ago. That will deliver 493 new student beds. I also opened Maynooth University's 116-bed project at the start of September in Teach Uí Bhuachalla, or Buckley House.

We have other measures, including things like VAT. In the recent budget, we reduced VAT from 13.5% to 9% on new apartment construction. I engaged with the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, on that measure to ensure it will help to unlock up to 15,000 additional student beds that have planning permission but have not progressed. Some of that is because of viability and cost issues.

In June, I published the Design Guide for State Sponsored Student Accommodation. That will support the optimisation of capacity in new developments and should also accelerate the delivery of that accommodation. I am working with the technological universities, TUs, through the technological sector student accommodation programme, which is an activation measure through which supports are provided to allow the TUs to develop their own accommodation and to support them in progressing that. I intend to publish the long-term student accommodation strategy, which is a work in progress at the moment, by the end of this year. It will include a range of measures across viability, affordability, increasing supply and maximising the amount of accommodation to make sure it is available to students. I am also working with the Minister, Deputy Browne, on the rent pressure zone legislation, which is expected to come through the House shortly to ensure it contains adequate protections for students.

Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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I very much welcome all the ideas the Minister has put forward. However, I appreciate that the previous strategy is coming to an end. Were all the ideas the previous Minister came up with in that strategy acted on and did they all fall into place? The previous strategy was to cover 2017 to 2021. I understand that it has come to an end, but I would like to see whether the actions in that strategy actually happened. Actions are great, but I like to see work done and things happen. I welcome the Minister's intention to increase the number of apartments for students, but I want to see action on the ground. Will this be delivered over a five-year basis, and will there be a certain amount done in each year?

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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That is very much the plan and what will be contained in the new strategy when we put all the bits of the jigsaw together and launch it. That will then guide everybody from local authorities to people in construction to the different higher education institutions to progress.

The actions in the last plan have progressed. That is why the €100 million in the short-term activation fund is there. That is why I was able to turn the sod at UCD recently and why we were able to bring on stream the new beds in Maynooth. There are others within that programme that we expect to come good through that scheme in the new future, because it is important that we maximise the availability of accommodation. We have other measures and supports such as the rent tax credit. One of the reasons I increased maintenance grants for non-adjacent students in this year's budget was to reflect the reality that additional accommodation costs and indeed transport costs for those living a bit further way in a non-adjacent setting can be challenging.

Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister said that the actions in the previous strategy did come good, but how come students cannot get accommodation this year? With the new strategy, will purpose-built student complexes charge additional affordable service and utility charges? Will the Minister ensure that additional charges and rent hikes will not happen again in rent pressure zones, and that the purpose-built accommodation will be retained for this purpose specifically? Can the Minister promise that?

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy. The first phase of the previous strategy set a target of 7,000 units and 8,000 were delivered, 1,000 above target. Of the second much more ambitious figure of 54,000 units, 49,000 were achieved, which is 91% of the target, at a time of Ukraine, Covid, Brexit and the supply chain crisis. That is a reasonably good foundation on which to build. I am not happy with service charges being levied on students and I have made that clear. I have written to some of the higher education institutions that were engaged in that practice to express my dissatisfaction and frustration. I have put a marker down that this should not be the case. We all have to find common cause on this and work together to maximise and optimise the supply of student accommodation. It is so important that we allow students to have a roof over their head and avoid commuting.

I ask the Deputy to look at her own party. I have written to Deputy McDonald on this. Her own councillor, Ciarán Ó Meachair, is opposed to student accommodation. He put out a leaflet just last month about opposition to student accommodation developments. We cannot speak from both sides of our mouth. I have invited Deputy McDonald to clarify that issue. I have written to her but have not received a reply. I do not know if the Deputy expects her to address it today. The Deputy comes into the House and rightly says we need student accommodation - I agree with her - but she should tell Sinn Féin councillors to stop opposing and objecting to such accommodation.