Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)

I assure the Senator that I would not support any legislation which would seek to impose added bureaucracy in an area where it is not required. I do not concede that this particular Bill is adding to the bureaucratic load facing third level institutions. In 2003 the institutions collectively acknowledged the importance of having a robust and effective quality assurance process in place across all of the colleges and, to that end, came together to form the Irish Universities Quality Board. The proposed qualifications and quality assurance authority of Ireland will simply continue that role. I do not know how often I must repeat that the authority does not, at any time in the future, intend to intervene in the life of any university other than at the very upper echelons in order to ensure its own quality assurance processes are as robust and effective as they should be. No more and no less than that is envisaged.