Carol Nolan (Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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167. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the amount of funding granted to the Mayo campus of the GMIT for each of the years 2012 to 2016 and to date in 2017; if he will consider proposals for future allocations to be ring fenced for the Mayo campus; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21398/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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My Department allocates the recurrent funding to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) for direct disbursement to the HEA designated higher education institutions including Institutes of Technology (IoTs) such as Galway Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT). The HEA allocates this funding to the institutions and the internal disbursement of funding is then a matter for the individual institution. Core funding is driven primarily by student numbers, either via the Recurrent Grant Allocation Model which is the mechanism used by the HEA to allocate funding or 'free fees' funding.

Higher Education Institutions are autonomous bodies and are responsible for their own day to day affairs, including the allocation of all of its income (both public and private).

My Department and the HEA recognise the particular challenges attached to multi-campus provision in both GMIT and other institutes of technology. The HEA has begun a major review of the funding allocation model for higher education and this review will include looking at how the future model can take account of the additional costs associated with such arrangements. The Department and the HEA are committed to such multi-campus provision, including Castlebar.

My Department and I along with the HEA and GMIT Governing Body are fully committed to and are in the process of establishing and implementing a viable development plan for the continuance of the GMI Castlebar campus. GMIT has appointed an Interim Head of the campus in Castlebar to lead this process.

In addition, Taoiseach Enda Kenny, TD, and I recently announced the establishment of a working group which will formulate a plan for a sustainable future of the GMIT Mayo Campus in Castlebar. The Working Group will be required to present a full report to the HEA’s Finance Committee in Q3 2017.