Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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947. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of increasing the student maintenance grant by €1,000 for full-time students at third level. [24279/23]

Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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948. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of increasing the non-adjacent maintenance grant by €1,000 to €4,225 for full-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [24280/23]

Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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950. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of increasing the adjacent maintenance grant by €1,000 to €2,415 for full-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [24282/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 947, 948 and 950 together.

In advance of Budget 2024 this autumn, and as I did last year, I will be publishing an options paper which will set out various possible measures to address the cost of education. I am doing this in order to facilitate public discussion on the various choices available to amend student supports. I will have regard to these options, including any options on increasing maintenance grants, when making proposals in the context of budget discussions.

Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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949. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of extending a non-adjacent maintenance grant by €1,000 to €4,225 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [24281/23]

Gary Gannon (Dublin Central, Social Democrats)
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951. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of extending an adjacent maintenance grant by €1,000 to €2,415 to part-time students at undergraduate and postgraduate level. [24283/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 949 and 951 together.

In advance of Budget 2024 this autumn, and as I did last year, I will be publishing an options paper which will set out various possible measures to address the cost of education. I am doing this in order to facilitate public discussion on the various choices available to amend student supports. I will have regard to these options, including any options on increasing maintenance grants, when making proposals in the context of budget discussions.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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952. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide a list of all external assurance process reviews tendered for to date; the value of the contract; and the name of the successful company, in tabular form. [24507/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The information requested by the Deputy in relation to external assurance process reviews is attached in tabular form.

">External Assurance Processes

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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953. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of students who undertake mandatory placement as part of their degree; how many of those are unpaid; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24814/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The data requested by the Deputy is not held by my Department nor the agencies under its remit.

Placements are organised at the level of each individual Higher Education Institution (HEI), as part of their programme offerings to be delivered in conjunction with relevant placement providers. Where appropriate, each HEI will develop their programme offerings to meet the accreditation standards of relevant regulatory and professional recognition bodies including where placements are a requirement.

Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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954. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide a list of all colleges in the North attended by students from the South, that are eligible for SUSI; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24911/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Under the terms of the Student Grant Scheme, grant assistance is awarded to eligible students attending an approved course in an approved institution who meet the prescribed conditions of funding including those relating to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means.

In relation to support available for students studying abroad, the Student Grant Scheme provides maintenance grants to eligible undergraduate students pursuing approved courses in other EU Member States. Also, Student grant legislation was amended in 2020 to retain the status quo, thus allowing funding for eligible students attending an approved undergraduate course in the UK to continue post-Brexit.

In general, an approved undergraduate course in this context is defined as a full-time undergraduate course of not less than two years duration pursued in a university or third level institution, which is maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from public funds in another EU Member State or the UK.

The student grant scheme does not, and never has, extended to the payment of tuition fees to institutions outside the State, other than for exceptional provision in respect of postgraduate courses in Northern Ireland. This provision is consistent with the principles of the Good Friday agreement and is intended to promote greater tolerance and understanding between both jurisdictions. The approved institutions to provide postgraduate courses in Northern Ireland, and the approved courses available therein, are as follows:

Queen’s University, Belfast – full-time Postgraduate courses of not less than one year duration;

University of Ulster – full-time Postgraduate courses of not less than one year duration;

St. Mary’s College of Education, Belfast – Postgraduate Certificate in Education (Irish Medium); and

Stranmillis College, Belfast – Postgraduate Certificate in Education.

The Scheme does not extend to PLC courses or provide for maintenance grants for postgraduate courses pursued outside of the State.

Funding under the Free Fees Initiative is only available in respect of approved courses within the State.

Tax relief at the standard rate of tax may be claimed in respect of tuition fees paid for approved courses at approved colleges of higher education including approved undergraduate and postgraduate courses in EU Member States and in non-EU countries. Further information on this tax relief is available from a student's local Tax office or from the Revenue Commissioners website

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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957. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the major capital works projects that are currently being part funded either by the Higher Education Authority and or his Department in Maynooth University in 2022 and to date in 2023; the amount of Exchequer funding provided to each capital works project; and when each of these capital works projects will be completed, in tabular form. [24975/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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€1,734,555 was disbursed to Maynooth University (MU) in July 2022 under the Devolved Grant 2022/2023. This funding issued to the higher education sector allows eligible HEIs, including MU, the flexibility to advance minor capital works (including health and safety works, access works, refurbishment and energy upgrades) and equipment purchase or renewal, including ICT. It is the responsibility of individual HEI to prioritise the works against which the funding will be deployed.

No capital funding has been issued to date in 2023 to the institution in question.

The Technology, Society & Innovation Building, part of the Arts and Science Cluster, which forms part of a wider plan to modernise and expand the Arts and Science buildings on the Maynooth University campus was officially opened by the then Taoiseach on the 1st September 2022. Funding of €25m was provided under the Higher Education Strategic Infrastructure Fund (HESIF 1) to co-fund the project and the funding in question was drawn down between 2019 and 2021.

MU was among eight higher education institutions approved in 2020 to progress projects under the Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation Pathfinder Programme 2020 co-funded with SEAI. The project is complete and is in the energy monitoring phase.