Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising the issue. I am answering on behalf of my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Harris, who of course has gone to great lengths to reduce the cost of further and higher education for students.

The Senator will be aware that budget 2024 contains a package of measures to support households with the cost of living. These cost-of-living measures include a €1,000 reduction in the student contribution fee for those higher education students who are eligible for the free fees initiative. Under the free fees initiative, the State provides funding toward the tuition fee of eligible undergraduate higher education students. Through the free fees initiative, the State has assumed responsibility for compensating institutions for the income previously generated by student tuition fees. This payment is exclusive of the student contribution.Free fees eligibility is restricted to full-time undergraduate courses in public higher education institutions in the State. However, there are a limited number of designated courses in private, not-for-profit institutions that attract free fees funding. Marino Institute of Education is a private institution but it has charitable status under the co-trusteeship of the European province of the Congregation of Christian Brothers and Trinity College Dublin. Higher education courses delivered in Marino Institute of Education are accredited by Trinity College Dublin under arrangements that date to the 1970s. The college is funded for approved initial teacher education programmes by the Department of Education, which has an oversight agreement in place with Marino Institute of Education.

The Department of Education continues to have responsibility for initial teacher education policy. The funding provided by the State in the academic year 2023-24 is for two free fees-eligible courses. Students on those courses are eligible for the student contribution reduction of €1,000 in the 2023-24 academic year. Outside those two courses, the State does not provide support and therefore cannot benefit from the €1,000 free fees reduction.