David Norris (Independent)

I regret this move by the Government and I hope the Minister will be in a position to reconsider it. The initiative was practical, worked and was of particular assistance to the disadvantaged. People on unemployment assistance, lone parents, people on farm assist schemes and blind people – the most vulnerable individuals in society – were taking up this opportunity. It is astonishing that this decision, which apparently – according to the voluminous correspondence I have received – was taken at Government level in January, has not yet been communicated to the people involved. This is confusing and worrying for these people as Senator Burke said. It is astonishing that people who are in the second year of their courses now find themselves in a situation where it is impossible for them to continue. That is regrettable and goes against the general trend.

I applaud the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Dempsey, in his attempts to target the available resources. He is quite correct. I agree with that on university level also. I support him on this because he is a courageous Minister. I do not mind tough decisions if they focus resources towards the people who need them most. I would certainly be happy to support those decisions. I know it would not make me popular with my electorate, but I would do it.

The good thing about this scheme was that there was a standard rate of payment applying to all participants. It was positive in that it was not means tested, was payable for the whole course and included a book allowance. The provision of the book allowance was particularly positive because people often find it difficult to access money for books, but on this scheme students were not just paid their allowance and left stranded. The scheme was particularly intended to address the problem of low participation in the educational system by people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

It is important for people to have access to higher degrees. The kind of academic qualifications I have would be damn all use in the open market and I am a senior lecturer. I threw my PhD out the window because I could not be bothered finishing it. I would probably be unemployable.