Sean Barrett (Independent)

I move amendment No. 8:

In page 12, line 27, to delete line 24 and substitute the following:

"(1) The general functions of the Authority, other than in relation to the previously established universities, shall be to--

(a) comply with section 14 of the Act of 1997,

(b) perform its duties without prejudice to the principles of academic freedom and academic tenure,".

I welcome the Minister of State. We had a significant debate on this issue in July and I was disappointed that so few of the elements we had discussed were incorporated into the Bill. The functions in respect of quality assurance in the university sector are best exercised by that sector. If we are to abolish the Irish Universities Quality Board, as intended in the Bill, in order to transfer its powers to a new super-quango, it will add an unnecessary layer of bureaucracy. With this amendment I am trying to preserve the powers for universities to take responsibility for the courses they provide. They already have an international trademark and publish research and recruit staff internationally. They are better known than the Irish quality mark it is proposed to introduce.

In assessing layers of bureaucracy in the education sector the Government should have given responsibility for the qualifications they award and have been awarding, in our case since 1592, to the institutions. It is completely unnecessary to have a new layer of bureaucracy inserted in this fashion. If we wanted to abolish the Irish Universities Quality Board, there should have been consultation. When the Comptroller and Auditor General considered this issue in his report, he indicated that it had been founded in 2002 as an independent body with a board comprising the nominees of the HEA, employer and trade union bodies, national and international education bodies, with one third of its members being nominated by the universities. It is funded by subscriptions from seven Irish universities and an annual grant from the HEA.

The idea that there be one national quango to validate everything from PhDs and post-doctoral work down to short courses in hairdressing, etc. seems to be completely bizarre and ignores the debate we had on the issue. It also ignores what is happening in Irish universities. One of the results has been the creation of a layer of bureaucracy in respect of quality assurance, which means nothing to the man or woman giving lectures, as they are evaluated by external examiners and the quality of graduates. I am delighted to tell the House that at a board meeting yesterday I heard that the level of unemployment among TCD graduates was 5%; therefore, we are three times better than in the economy as a whole, in which the unemployment rate is nearly 15%. Internationally accredited external examiners validate courses, questions and the marking. Students who apply to universities across the world may be accepted in the likes of Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Oxford and Cambridge universities. As Ireland has a small home market, research must be published internationally.

An bord snip nua recommended the abolition of the Higher Education Authority, but now we will also have Qualifications and Quality Assurance Ireland, which will divert money away from education and the lecture hall. I am proposing that the university sector not be a part of this. If there is dissatisfaction with the Irish Universities Quality Board, shunting it to another board is not the solution. We should consider whether we need it and, given that the international standing of Irish universities has been at such a high level for decades or centuries, whether we need a State body in charge. How will the eight people appointed by the Minister know if somebody is good in the fields of thermodynamics or advanced econometrics? They will not; they will rely on the university concerned for such information. Therefore, the exercise is flawed as it is applied to universities.