Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
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Question 302: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if the Government will make bursaries available in 2004 to assist persons pursuing nursing training in England. [15567/04]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Students undertaking the nursing degree programme may qualify for a means tested higher education grant from the Department of Education and Science similar to all third level students.

I have made inquiries of my colleague the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Noel Dempsey. His Department's higher education grant scheme provides maintenance grants to eligible students pursuing approved undergraduate courses in other EU member states, including the UK. In general, approved courses are those pursued in a third level institution that is maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from public funds.

Students attending approved courses in other member states are subject to the same conditions of funding as students attending approved courses in the State. The main conditions of funding relate to age, residence, means, nationality and previous academic attainment. Tax relief on tuition fees is available in respect of approved courses at undergraduate and postgraduate level in other member states.

In recent years the UK authorities introduced a number of changes in the financial support arrangements for students pursuing courses at further and higher education institutions. This included the introduction of an annual tuition fee for students entering further and higher education institutions for the first time from the 1998-1999 academic year and the replacement of maintenance grants by student loans to be phased in from that year also. All EU students, including Irish students, are eligible for grant assistance towards the tuition fee, subject to the same conditions as apply to UK students.

The number of training places available here has increased by 70% across the three disciplines of general, psychiatric and mental handicap nursing since 1998. They are as follows:

The number of training places was increased in direct response to the identified needs of the services involved. It is a key element of my overall strategy for ensuring that sufficient home trained nurses are produced for our health services in the future.

Applications for the nursing degree programme continue to greatly exceed the number of places available. Therefore, I do not see the need to introduce bursaries for individuals pursuing nursing training in England.