John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

I thank the Senator for raising this matter on the Adjournment. I will outline the legislative and policy context in which Waterford Institute of Technology's application must be considered. As the Senator may be aware, the Government commissioned a major OECD review of higher education to support Ireland's strategic ambition of placing our higher education system at the front rank of the OECD in the context of the wider national objective of developing the State as a world-leading knowledge economy and society. A key recommendation made in the OECD's report to the Government was that Ireland should retain the differentiation in mission of the university and institute of technology sectors, which it identified as a key strength of our system, and that there should be no institutional transfers into the university system for the foreseeable future. The report also recommended that the universities and institutes of technology be brought together under the remit of a single authority for the purpose of achieving a unified higher education strategy. It further recommended that the extent of external regulation of the institutes of technology should be lightened, giving them greater managerial freedom in responding to the opportunities and challenges of supporting regional and national social and economic development.

The Institutes of Technology Act 2006 addresses significant elements of these recommendations and marks a major milestone for the sector and the development of higher education in Ireland. The Act provides for greater autonomy for the institutes to fulfil their missions. By bringing them within the remit of the Higher Education Authority, it supports an integrated and cohesive strategic approach to the development of higher education in line with national priorities. The Act means that, in practice, the Higher Education Authority and institutes of technology will now engage and relate in a way that is very similar to the way the authority and the universities engage. The new arrangements provide for a more autonomous and strategic relationship with the Government, through the HEA. They reflect the dynamic and competitive nature of the environment in which the institutes of technology now operate.

In February 2006, the governing body of Waterford Institute of Technology wrote to the Department of Education and Science to request a review of the institute's status under section 9 of the Universities Act 1997, which states:

The Government may, at any time, appoint a body, the membership of which shall be recommended by An tÚdarás and shall include international experts and national experts, including employees of universities to which this Act applies, to advise An tÚdarás on whether, having regard to the objects and functions of a university under sections 12 and 13, an educational institution should be established as a university. On the advice of the body and the recommendation of An tÚdarás, but subject to subsection (3), the Government may, by order, provide that the institution shall be a university for the purposes of this Act and, on the making of the order, it shall be established accordingly.

To assist the Department in its assessment of Waterford IT's application, the Minister appointed Dr. Jim Port in February 2007 to provide preliminary advice on the merits of the submission by WIT, having regard to the national strategy for the development of higher education, the implications for regional development in the south east in the context of the national spatial strategy and any likely implications for the overall structure of higher education in Ireland. Dr. Port's report was received by the Department of Education and Science and is under consideration.

As I said earlier, aside from the detailed statutory review process that is required in progressing an application, significant wider issues also need to be considered in advance of any possible statutory review. The Minister for Education and Science is aware of the strong support in the south east for the application of Waterford IT for university status. However, wider policy developments must be central to her consideration of the appropriate next steps in respect of the application. WIT's application is being carefully assessed in that broad context.