Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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2002.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if the income assessments for SUSI will be reviewed (details supplied); the measures the Government will take to help with the accommodation crisis for college students; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[35420/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The availability and cost of accommodation is a challenge for many students in realising their ambitions for higher education. I provided an update to Government last week on the progression of policies designed to alleviate these challenges.

Under the Student Grant Scheme, ‘holiday earnings’ is income that a student has earned outside of term time in the previous tax year and can be deducted from the total income assessed, up to a maximum level.

It is important to say that the rationale for the policy approach of focusing on earnings outside of term time is to mitigate against students working so much during their third level education that it negatively impacts on their ability to fully participate in their course. This issue was highlighted most recently by the independent review of the Student Grant Scheme, which outlined that while there are many benefits to students engaging in some forms of employment, it is also important to recognise that working excessive hours can negatively impact a student's education experience and may result in them dropping out.

Over the past few Budgets, the amount a student can earn during holiday periods (Easter, summer and Christmas) has increased. This amount has increased from €6,552 in the 2023/2024 academic year to €7,925 in the 2024/2025 academic year in line with the increase in minimum wage. Earnings over the holiday periods up to a maximum of €7,925 shall be exempt in the 2024/25 academic year.

In advance of Budget 2025 this autumn, I will be publishing an options paper which will set out various possible measures to reduce the cost of education. This is being done in order to facilitate public discussion on the various choices available to improve student supports. I will take these options into consideration when making proposals in the context of budget discussions.

A capital investment of €100m from the National Development Plan windfall allocation enabled the progression of 1,014 new Purpose-Built Student Accommodation beds - 30% of the new beds will be ringfenced for target group students at below market rates. This short-term approach has been necessary in the context of the housing challenges faced and the inability of Higher Education Institutions to progress developments with planning permission due to cost viability issues.

Long-term measures for increasing supply of student accommodation include funding for public new build student accommodation, reducing the cost of delivery through development of standardised design guidance, promoting efficient use of existing building stock through refurbishment and an examination of vacancy, while supporting balanced regional development through the Technological University feasibility study.

The new strategy will also continue to focus on the promotion of digs accommodation. The 2024 rent-a-room campaign commenced on 09 August 2024 across print and social media channels. As of the 28th of August 2024, a total of 3,849 digs beds are being advertised by our universities and colleges, an increase of 1,249 beds since the beginning of the campaign.

For the 2024/2025 academic year, €600,000 in Dormant Accounts funding has been committed to assist students from Traveller and Roma backgrounds and those with experience of the care system with the cost of accommodation, when living independently while attending third level education.

In addition, to protect students in the rental market, I have worked closely with Minister O’Brien to bring forward legislative amendments. The Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2024 (Commencement) Order 2024 was signed by Minister O’Brien on the 18th July and appointed 19th July 2024 as the date on which the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2024 comes into operation.

The Act ensures that Student Specific Accommodation (SSA) leases/licences are aligned to the traditional academic calendar of September to May (up to a maximum of 41 weeks). The Act also strengthens the protections for students on advanced rent payments to ensure students are not sought/required to make payments of more than what is currently legislated for to secure a tenancy/licence in SSA.