Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)
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Question 449: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if she will amend the higher education grant scheme to allow for the eligibility of a non-national person (details supplied); and if pending the necessary amendment local authorities operating the scheme will use discretion to accept applications from this person and others in the same circumstances. [27816/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Under the terms of the higher education grants scheme grant assistance is awarded to students who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those which relate to nationality, residency, means and previous academic attainment. The nationality requirement as set out in Clause 4.5 of the Higher Education Grant Scheme 2005 states:

Candidates must: hold EU Nationality; or have Official Refugee Status; or have been granted Humanitarian Leave to Remain in the State; or have permission to remain in the State by virtue of marriage to an Irish national residing in the State or be the child of such person, not having EU nationality; or have permission to remain in the State by virtue of marriage to a national of another EU Member State who is residing in the State and who is or has been employed, or self-employed, in the State, or be the child of such a person, not having EU nationality; or be nationals of a member country of the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.

As the candidate referred to by the Deputy is a non-EU national who has been granted permission to remain in the State on the basis of parentage of an Irish born child, I regret that she does not comply with the above conditions and is ineligible for grant assistance under the nationality requirements of the scheme.

I have no plans to extend the nationality clause of the student support schemes. Any extension to the scope of the maintenance grants scheme can be considered only in the light of available resources and in the context of competing demands within the education sector.