Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House and thank her for her substantive response to Senator Barrett's Bill. I compliment Senator Barrett. Like my colleague, Senator Ó Domhnaill, I am happy to be here to contribute in a small way to supporting Senator Barrett's initiative. His Bill is well crafted and I commend his parliamentary adviser, Dr. Larkin, who worked with him on putting this Bill together.

In the context of education funding overall, I believe I am correct in saying that while there have been significant reductions in the higher education budgets over the years, one of the areas which needs more funding is primary level. Of the three levels of education, the primary sector is the one that does not seem to get the funding many believe it should. The reason I mention this is there has been significant talk about the need to ensure that those living in the most socially and economically disadvantaged part of the country should have greater access to higher education. The statistics indicate there is still a low quota of students from such areas, particularly in our larger urban environments. Whether for cultural, financial or other reasons, only small numbers of these students access third level education.

There is a strong need to ensure Governments, of whatever hue or colour, try to establish greater parity between those who start off on the education path. Perhaps there should be greater funding in the primary sector to prepare these students for the secondary and third level sector. I do not suggest there is an easy answer to this complex issue, but in the context of this piece of legislation, we should not forget a significant cohort of young people do not access third level education, which makes it increasingly more difficult for them to access work.

We have the highest proportion of young people in the EU attending third level education. I think I am right in saying that it is significantly higher at 44% whereas the EU average is 28%. Therefore, because of our growing and expanding economy and because of the success of foreign direct investment, Ireland is a competitive environment for international companies. They know they can tap into an increasingly sophisticated and well educated cohort of young workers. What happens to the people who fall through the basket, net or cracks of education? I refer to people who have not attained a leaving certificate, a qualification which nearly always guaranteed access to jobs. At one time in order to get a job in the public service it was sufficient to have a leaving certificate qualification. Now, in some instances a basic degree is not sufficient and one needs a masters qualification which puts even greater pressure on people. My daughter has benefitted from third level education in this country. Sadly, she no longer lives in the country because she is working in Perth in Australia. We all hope she will return. I know from her experience of seeking employment that there was a significant difference in pay rates for someone who held an ordinary degree and someone who held a masters degree. My daughter attained the higher qualification which helped her, as it has done for many others in a similar situation. Therefore, there is a need to ensure universities are on top of their game which is what motivated Senator Barrett's to bring forward this legislation.

My party supports the Bill. We have already pointed out that the reduction in third level funding will damage the quality of education at third level and have a detrimental affect on long-term economic prospects. There has been virtually no new State investment in capital infrastructure in Irish universities and colleges over the term of this Government, I am told. According to the Higher Education Authority, 40% of the system's infrastructure if now below standard. That is a significant percentage. I am sure the Minister is more than aware of these inefficiencies in the system which are the result of reduced funding.

As has been stated, universities currently receive 50% of their income directly from the State or State's resources. Unfortunately, the Minister has shot down a number of the initiatives Senator Barrett included in this Bill.

The next item is research. The Minister has outlined various aspects of research in this country and across the economy in general. I am glad she has put on record that Ireland has adopted a national strategy to maximize its participation in Horizon 2020 with an ambitious target of securing €1.25 billion for Irish researchers and companies during the lifetime of Horizon 2020. I am glad to know that Horizon 2020 has the biggest EU research budget with over €80 billion of funding available over seven years. Ireland has a good record for accessing EU funding, particularly for research in that regard. I am pleased to note that the Minister said there was merit in the Senator's proposals in the Bill. I am also pleased that she has said she would be happy to consider their inclusion in the general scheme of the higher education reform Bill, to be published later this year.

In terms of tenure, the Minister made the argument that she cannot allow universities to have the remuneration autonomy referred to by Senator Barrett. Also that his recommendation is not in line with Government policy and, therefore, cannot be supported. However, I believe the motives behind his initiative are commendable. They seek to ensure there is a sequence within the university structures that ensures researchers and lecturers, at a particular level, will stay in the system and stay in Ireland. Also, there would be sufficient and relevant remuneration, comparable with other countries, that would result in such people not having to emigrate from this country. It would mean that the universities, having nurtured and mentored such people, would not lose them. As a result, the attractiveness of Irish universities would be enhanced, in terms of their internal framework, which can only be of benefit to the country.

We may not like them but we all look at the league tables. Irish universities, relatively speaking for the size of the country, tend to be under or just over the top 100 in the league. I have often wondered what would get us to the top with Harvard, the MIT and the other international universities. Is there something amiss in Irish universities? That is a rhetorical question.

I agree with having intellectual property and corporations within universities. The Minister is not too happy about it from what I can gather from her response. However, I can see the reasons Senator Barrett included such a provision. He maintains that the new legal form of the designated activity companies, DACs, would stimulate spin-off firms from university research. Also, it would allow these firms to maintain complicated intellectual property rights but also remain at the early capital development stage and attached to the university campus.

Overall, Senator Barrett has done some service by contributing to the ongoing debate on funding for universities, the research environment and, as I said at the outset, improving greater access for people who are socially and economically disadvantaged. We can talk indefinitely about much of what is in this Bill in terms of existing universities. There is a need for governments to prioritise the young people of this country by ensuring they benefit from the fruits of economic growth and development going forward. That is a challenge for this Government.

We still have a significant number of young people out of work and do not have the relevant education attained to get back into the workforce. The Government is attempting, with a variety of initiatives, to get such people back into full-time training and education. If they leave the school system and are inadequately prepared they will find it increasingly difficult to find jobs, irrespective of how successful the economy expands. I commend Senator Barrett on his initiative in this regard.