Aisling Dolan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for coming here to debated the Bill with us. The third level education landscape has been transformed over the last number of years. We have had the creation of the brand new Department of Further, Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. There has also been great focus on third level, which is crucial. There has been the development of technological universities to drive innovation in new campus towns and cities across the country. The third level qualifications of a degree, masters and PhD are now more accessible to people everywhere.

The announcement earlier today regarding additional places at third level is welcome, especially after the increases that each of the HEIs delivered over the last two years. The HEIs have been incredible, in particular when one considers that they were at the pin of their collars.There has been so much work within the Department and the HEIs to deliver this. The expansion of third level, as the Minister mentioned, is targeting college places as well as the apprenticeship programme. One thing we have focused on, which has been a target throughout his Department, is further and higher education and how important it is to have that. Even if there are not opportunities for people to continue under further and higher education, they can still achieve degrees. There is no longer just that traditional path we always speak of, whereby people go directly to college. There are so many people who sometimes cannot afford the costs of going to college, whether because of rent or having to travel for hours on end. I studied in Coleraine and we talked a lot about transport on buses. It involved an eight-hour journey, with two buses, a train and another bus, to get from Ballinasloe to Galway, then to get a bus to Sligo and to go over to Derry, before travelling to Coleraine and Portstewart. Students do this. They travel and put in the hours but we have to show there is more accessibility, and through the technological universities and campuses, we can now do that.

I like the fact that IT, architecture and construction, nursing, engineering and education and welfare are now part of this apprenticeship programme and that 16 new apprenticeships that have been rolled out. Members also were given a breakdown and although it does not include the medical student places, I acknowledge the work of the new technological universities that have come into being and are really delivering here, as our HEIs have been doing over recent years.

The core objectives of this legislation on the HEA relate to promoting and supporting our higher education institutes. It is about excellence in teaching, learning and research, and that is down to investment not only by our Government but also from non-Exchequer areas. We need to ensure our institutions will be able to take an income from international students, which was such a loss over the two years of lockdown. Moreover, they need to be able to take an income through Horizon Europe and other international funding programmes that reward success at an international peer-review, competitive level.

We also need to promote and safeguard the interests of students and advance equality, diversity and inclusion in higher education. Much work has been done by our HEIs, particularly at National University of Ireland, Galway, under the consent framework. That has been crucial in tackling an awful lot of challenges we are seeing in our third level sector. Our HEIs are taking the lead and rolling it out, with an evidence base around it, in order that we will have safer places for students and staff in HEIs.

The accountability framework, too, is very important. I have spoken to representatives of the Irish Universities Association, IUA. As the Minister stated earlier, there are 179 amendments on which he has engaged over a long consultation process, and this has been going on through a number of Departments. It is crucial that the voice of all stakeholders be heard and engaged with and that we come out with legislation that will really work for us in Ireland because we want our institutions to be world class. They need to be world class.