Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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127. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills her plans to abolish the student contribution charge. [32406/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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As the Deputy will be aware the Student Contribution stands at €3,000 for the current academic year, 2015/16. It should be noted that some 50% of students who qualify for free fees funding have the Student Contribution paid on their behalf by the Exchequer under my Department's Student Grant Scheme.

An Expert Working Group chaired by Peter Cassells is currently preparing a report on future funding policy for higher education. The objective is to identify a range of approaches that, combined, will achieve a sustainable funding base to address the continual expansion of the sector while protecting the quality of education.