Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 125: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills if the Student Support Bill will make allowances for students who attend a college (details supplied) and are unable to avail of third level grants because it is recognised as a private commercial college; if the Department of Education and Skills will base its grants system on financial circumstances instead of the form of education being received; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39788/10]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The statutory framework for the Higher Education Grants Scheme, as set out in the Local Authorities (Higher Education Grants) Acts, 1969 to 1992, provides for means-tested higher education grants to assist students to attend full-time third level education in approved institutions. The institutions approved under the scheme are, generally speaking, publicly-funded third level colleges offering full-time courses at undergraduate and post-graduate level. Each year, the Higher Education Grants Scheme specifies a list of institutions approved for the purposes of the scheme.

My Department provides very significant funding to publicly-funded third level institutions in the State. This funding is used to provide a very broad range of courses to meet both economic and societal needs. Private commercial colleges, in general, operate on a "for profit" basis and the State has no say in directing their operations. Section 8 of the Student Support Bill as published makes provision for the Minister, in certain circumstances and taking certain matters into account, to prescribe an educational institution as being an approved institution for grants purposes. However, I have no plans to extend the scope of the student grant schemes to private colleges operated on a "for profit" basis at this time.