Joe McHugh (Fine Gael)

I agree with Senator Maurice Hayes on his point about the exploitation of Polish workers. There must be proper mechanisms to prevent any form of exploitation of any foreign immigrant.

September is a month in which politicians are inundated with phone calls from students and parents on the subject of student grants. Politicians have developed an institutionalised way of thinking in which we expect parents to phone up to ask where to obtain a grant or when it is due. Parents are crippled by the costs of paying rent and upkeep for their student children which is why grants should be fast-tracked by centralising the process. Students do not know whether to approach VECs or local authorities. While it is very easy to be critical of these bodies, it is not good enough given the fact that at issue is the question of resources. Staff should be provided, programmes should be established and mechanisms should be put in place long before September.

I call on the Minister for Education and Science to centralise the process to establish a one-stop-shop for the fast-tracking of student grants. We should get away from the idea of using VECs and local authorities. Let us pump resources into the process. If we must use local authorities, we should employ people to get the job done rather than have us continue to be tortured. It is not politicians as a group for whom we should feel sorry, but students and theirparents.