Pauline Tully (Sinn Fein)

Last week, I received an email about student accommodation from a third level student who was from County Cavan and studying in Dublin. In the email, he stated he had a savings fund that was supposed to cover his housing for the four years he would be studying. He had entered into a year-long rental contract at €1,000 a month. The place was in shambles with broken furniture, and he felt he had very few rights and supports. He then had to move to digs where he had no renter's rights or access to a kitchen and had to commute from Lucan to Dublin city centre. He also could not stay at weekends or leave his things there. The next accommodation was worse. It was more expensive and had hidden fees that he had no knowledge of when he moved in. He had to move back home to County Cavan and now commutes to Dublin. It is a two-hour journey there and a two-hour journey back. This means he misses out on social life and mandatory trips, and his attendance has been heavily impacted.

I have just come from the audiovisual room where the students union at the Technological University of the Shannon presented a report, called "No Room for Learning: Accommodation and Cost of Living Report". Its findings reflect what this student in Cavan says and what students throughout the country state. It makes for stark reading. The majority of those living with their parents are doing so because they have no choice. They are commuting long distances. Those who find somewhere to rent pay extortionate rents and often share rooms with strangers. They are working up to 30 hours a week to support themselves, which is impacting their studies. Almost half of those who took part in the study were not in receipt of any support such as SUSI.

Students are very concerned about accommodation and the cost-of-living measures. They are concerned about the proposed increase to the student contribution by the Minister, Deputy Lawless, to €3,000 from this autumn. Last week, we witnessed what I see as a false argument between two parties in government together, each blaming the other Minister for the situation. I ask that the Ministers come together and sort out this issue. Do not raise the fees. It will have a detrimental effect on our third level student population. The dropout rate is very concerning and this is only going to make it worse.