Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

My query relates to third level grants. I understand this is not the Minister's area, but I presume he has been provided with a response on it. In the past three weeks I have been in contact with two people who have dropped out of college. In one case the person came to Ireland with parents who had been recruited by the health service to work in an Irish hospital. The mother, a maternity nurse, was recruited from the Philippines when there was a shortage of maternity nurses and her entire family came here with her. Her daughter spent a full five or six years in secondary school here and also spent some time in primary school here and got her leaving certificate. The mother got citizenship, but the daughter could not apply for citizenship until her mother had got hers. She got her leaving certificate and a place in university, but then found out that she does not qualify for a grant for attending university. Her mother has been paying income tax in this country for the past eight or nine years.

The second case is similar. The person in this case has been paying income tax since 2001. This student has done two years in university and has had to pay full fees. The student does not have citizenship, but she is not receiving the student grant for attending university, although both parents have been paying income tax for eight or nine years.

I seek clarification with regard to how these cases are dealt with. It appears to me that these students are being penalised even though their parents have been paying tax in this country and have contributed to the country. In the first case, the parent has made a huge contribution in the health care sector during a time when there was a shortage, but now despite the work she has done and the taxes she has paid, her family is being penalised. Can I have clarification on this matter?