Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 66: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if he is having discussions with the vocational education committees and their representative organisations with a view to rationalising the administration of student grants as envisaged under the Student Support Bill 2008; his views on such rationalisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12263/09]

Batt O'Keeffe (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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The Student Support Bill, which was published in February 2008 provides the legislative framework for the reform of the administration of student grants and the amalgamation of the existing four student grant schemes into a single unified scheme which will be provided for by way of regulation.

The Bill is part of an overall programme of legislative and administrative reform, which will facilitate the introduction of significant service level improvements in the administration of student grants, providing for greater consistency of application, improved client accessibility and timely delivery of grants to those who need them most. It will include guaranteed timeframe for the assessment of grants, an independent appeals procedure and more efficient arrangements for handling applications and making payments. This new, significantly more customer-oriented system of administration will provide for a more simplified and accessible applications system, much greater speed and consistency in processing student grant applications, more transparency and accountability in the awarding of grants and regular, on-time EFT payments for students.

The passage of the Bill will facilitate progress on the two other significant pillars of this project, the development of a single unified grant scheme and the consolidation of the administration of student grants into the VEC sector.

The Department is working closely with the IVEA and other relevant stakeholders to develop the new administrative structures required to support more efficient and effective delivery of the new unified grants scheme.