Linda Nelson Murray (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for coming in today to debate my Commencement matter. As a former Member of the Seanad on the cultural and educational panel, I am sure he will be interested in what I am talking about here.

As an employer and having spoken to parents, I have noticed the unfair nature in which holiday earnings are calculated for the Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI, grant. At present, if you are a student registered on a full-time course and you are working, SUSI can deduct a portion of your income earned outside of term time. These are classified as holiday earnings and, for the 2025-26 academic year, the maximum deduction is €8,424 and applies to income earned during Easter, summer and Christmas holidays.Do not get me wrong: this is great as it allows people to work some hours at a time they are off college. However, the way the SUSI grant is calculated no longer reflects the true cost of being a student. Rent is higher than ever for students, food costs are increasing, and this is before we consider transport, books, materials, and basic living expenses. While income thresholds that determine the grant a student receives have changed, they have not changed enough. Students are currently unfairly penalised if they are working too much while they study. Students should be encouraged to work part-time as much as they can while in college without risking any cuts to their SUSI grant and, obviously, without it negatively affecting their course, but let them decide that. As an owner of a small business, we have staff, particularly those in secondary school moving on to college, worried about working hours as they do not want it to affect them obtaining grants through SUSI. Many businesses have staffing issues and many students need money to support their studies and lifestyle. We must consider extending the holiday earnings deduction to allow for a percentage of part-time work throughout the year. This would benefit students and businesses alike.

Like many, when I was in college, I worked during holidays and weekends to support myself living away from home. It is important to promote hard work and to instil in our young people the benefits of getting up and going to work. The SUSI threshold is a barrier to those students who want to stand on their own two feet as much as they can while still in full-time education. I am calling for the threshold for students working to increase to €12,000 as a starting point and allow it for the entire year, not just holiday earnings. I would, of course, like to see this increased to €14,000 in next year's budget. This will allow students to work a couple of days per week or perhaps a couple of evenings without impacting their SUSI grant. It is an absolute win, win, win, for students, for parents, and for businesses. For students, they are learning a trade and earning money. I worked in Dunnes Stores. In the 1990s you worked very hard when you were in Dunnes Stores. It was a great lesson in life, and it was great for wages. I also worked in a chemist, which was another great job, and it helped me keep my social life going too. For parents, it will help relieve some of the stress they have with all of the costs, and for businesses, they are getting staff, particularly in hospitality and leisure, when they are busy at weekends.

College is a great opportunity for young people to learn and grow and is, ultimately, a path to building a career and contributing to the economy. It is time for a common-sense approach to calculating the SUSI grant and to provide supports, while also enabling students to ultimately support themselves.