Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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1015. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he, in conjunction with the relevant Government departments, will take steps to alleviate the stress on the student accommodation system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12834/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I am actively addressing the difficulties faced by students in accessing affordable student accommodation. Fundamentally the challenge of affordable student accommodation is one of supply of housing more generally.

The outbreak of war in Ukraine has compounded the impact of Brexit and Covid 19, coupled with the cost of construction and fossil fuels, has posed significant difficulties for higher education institutions building PBSA. The higher cost of finance has significantly contributed to the overall cost of new projects. A number of HEI’s had to pause their student accommodation projects as a result of these challenges.

To assist in restarting the HEI projects, on 29 November 2022, I secured Government approval to develop both short and medium term policy responses to activate supply of affordable student accommodation.

These landmark policy responses will, for the first time, see the state providing financial support for the construction of student accommodation, and underpins the policy commitments set out in Housing for All and the National Access Plan. They will ensure increased availability of and promote greater access to student accommodation, in particular for disadvantaged students.

In November 2022, Government approved funding support to develop accommodation for students of the University of Limerick, Maynooth University and the University of Galway. In March 2023, further funding was secured for the delivery of 405 additional student accommodation beds in DCU. These developments have or will imminently have planning permission but have stalled as a result of increased construction costs.

My Department and the Higher Education Authority (HEA) are actively working through the financial and governance due diligence process for these projects and have contracted Mazars to undertake a feasibility study on these projects, in line with the Public Spending Code.

In addition, the Department is working with the Office of the Attorney General to address EU State Aid requirements.

The Department is also examining a proposal with potential phasing options at UCD. TCD and UCC also have projects that could potentially benefit from the short-term activation scheme.

In parallel, longer term policy development is being advanced to examine a broader range of methods to increase supply of student accommodation. Support of €1m is being provided to our Technological Universities (TUs) to conduct a needs assessment and to identify appropriate regional activation responses. My Department is also examining the development of a TU Borrowing Framework in conjunction with other Government Departments, in line with the commitments in "Housing for All".

All higher education institutions continue to support their students to find accommodation in the private rental sector through, for example, the encouragement of room rental or ‘student digs’ in family homes. A homeowner can rent a room, retain their social welfare entitlements where applicable, and earn up to €14,000 in rental income before having to pay tax.

My officials and I are continuing to work alongside our Government colleagues to examine these range of measures to assist students with accommodation.