James Lawless
Kildare North · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“I am always open to feedback. The academics and authors of that report are entitled to their views, as are others. I just do not share all of their conclusions. As the Deputy said, the consultant spending was before my time. A lot of it was before the Department even existed.”
“More broadly, and this is something I think there is great potential to do more on, we are also promoting modern methods of construction, MMC, so we can embrace 2D or 3D models where they are either partially assembled off site and then brought to the location or almost fully assembled and the finished kit is brought into place.”
“In the energy space, that includes a commitment of €10 billion to enhance the grid capacity, because we need to be able to transit the energy as well as generate it, the workforce and the talent to do that - everything from retrofitting to green energy technicians and renewable energy engineers.”
“The capital funding envelop available to me is the mechanism through which I fund these projects, which is significant with €4.55 billion allocated across my Department for capital projects. SETU is the relevant institute in the south east, and it has multiple campuses, including a presence in the Xcelerate Centre at St.”
“I will recap on some of the measures I have introduced already because it is important to put them on the record again. In the previous budget, I was pleased to introduce the first ever permeant fee cut for students since free fees were introduced almost 30 years ago with a €500 permanent reduction.”
“Exactly. That is why we have a record €4.5 billion commitment across the sector. Regarding student facilities, there is the likes of the bundle 2 PPP programme which enhances student facilities on university campuses across the country.”
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“We provided an additional €77 million in funding for apprenticeships alone in budget 2025, bringing the total to €339 million, which is an 84% increase since 2020. This morning, the Minister for Education and Youth, Deputy McEntee, and I brought an education indicators report to Cabinet that showed that the number of apprentices in the system had grown by one third between 2022 and 2023. We have seen really significant progress in the apprenticeship field in terms of people entering, the course options available, and the funding being provided. We have seen positive progress across the board. There are some very new and interesting programmes, such as civil engineering, wind turbine maintenance, digital marketing, cybersecurity, software development and town planning.”
“This is a really important question. We are bringing forward a successor apprenticeship action plan. We are also looking at an integrated apprenticeship model, something I will be canvassing with stakeholders at the labour economic forum shortly. I have already met the unions and others in the relevant space and that is something we will continue to engage on. We are undertaking a review of the current action plan for apprenticeships and looking at a new five-year strategy that will guide the system from 2026 onwards. One of the priorities is to continue to strengthen the system to meet the skills needs of industry and adapt to workforce challenges. It is only fair to put on the record that apprenticeship funding has grown significantly.”
“We can build more houses with fewer materials, fewer costs and less labour if we correctly deploy the technologies and modern methods involved. We need to get adoption and that skills roll-out into industry. We have put a portal in place that allows students, developers, craftworkers and people from all across the industry to find their way through and come out the far side. It is worth looking at the MMC portal. If we can do that at scale across the rest of the sector, we will have done some useful work.”
“I studied accounting for my leaving cert and then studied mathematics as an undergraduate. Perhaps my focus on numbers has been unfortunate in recent days. Perhaps there is a bigger picture than the pure mathematical realities, something I am learning. Again I agree with the Deputy. The Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, and I recently launched a subset of the overall system but a really strong exemplar of what can work well - the modern methods of construction pathway. Recently in Mount Lucas, along with the Minister, Deputy Burke, and the Minister, Deputy Browne, the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, and I launched a modern methods of construction skills portal and pathway. Obviously, as a country, we have a significant housing challenge and modern methods of construction are one way we can get a productivity dividend.”
“We are also doing some work on behavioural science. My Department is working with the ESRI to better understand the choices that students, apprentices and young learners make and why they make them. They may not be for intuitive reasons. They may not be for the reasons that we might project our own world views on. There may be other interesting findings from that. All of that together will inform us as to what behaviours students exhibit, why do that, why they make certain choices and how we can help them to navigate, including by means of a comprehensive and unified portal.”
“The Deputy is absolutely right. As I said in my initial remarks, there is a programme for Government commitment to bring together the different portals into a shared information hub. That is very much a work in progress. I have canvassed the different agencies on that as I have been meeting them in my short time to date. We have tried to come up with an integrated tertiary system, covering further education, higher education, apprenticeships and all the different routes that people can pursue for further education and training beyond their leaving cert. Some of this goes into pre-leaving cert. My colleague, the Minister for education, Deputy McEntee, is doing work on her side of the system on how we get supports out through career guidance counsellors. It is one of the ones where it meets in the middle.”
“It is especially challenging for those in lower socioeconomic spectrums who may not have that social capital behind them in terms of a parent or sibling who may have navigated the system before them and may find it even more challenging than others. The programme for Government contains a commitment to create a new website with comprehensive information on third level pathways, supporting students across the island. That is an objective I am working towards and I have discussed with the northern stakeholders as part of my tour as a new Minister. We already pulling together the CAO and apprenticeship courses so that there is single information point. On an all-island basis, we are working on synchronising the UCAS and the CAO sites. I discussed that with the Minister, Dr. Archibald, at the North-South Ministerial Council recently.”
“Following an OECD report he is working with his team to put in place a national skills observatory to look at the skills needed in different areas so that we can manage the pipeline and ensure those needs are being met. There are a number of different routes through the system and there are challenges navigating that when people are trying to make those decisions at the early stages. There are centralised websites such as qualifax.ie which has outlines course and qualifications details. CAO.ie is probably one of the better known ones. We also have susi.ie for student grants and apprenticeship.ie for people taking the apprenticeship route. There is a lot of good information but it is scattered across different websites and can be confusing and time-consuming to navigate.”
“Central to the Deputy's question is the provision of information in whatever form. The question mentioned an information hub. It goes back to a deeper question about how we guide young people - some not so young - but primarily school-leavers into the right choices in their career paths. We need to recognise that the day of a job for life is gone. We see the advent of digital and artificial intelligence, AI, with skills changing all the time. We realise that the job market and the skills needs of today are not those of yesterday and indeed not those of tomorrow. Last Thursday I launched the national skills report with Dr. Kevin Marshall. On behalf of the Government, he is putting in place a skills report which looks at the future skills needs of the labour force.”
“I have met apprentices throughout the country, as has the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin. Largely they find it an enjoyable, productive and worthwhile process. I absolutely agree that there should be sanctions for those who misbehave, but let us not lose sight of the bigger picture that many very successful relationships are going on there as well.”
“I will recap on some of the measures that are available if there is any breach. There is a code of practice for employers and apprentices and sanctions are available. SOLAS imposes those sanctions should they arise. Section 11 of the code of practice sets out such measures as a written warning, a final written warning, suspension from being able to take on apprenticeships for six months, and indefinite suspension. It is a very legitimate concern. However, the recent survey confirms that overall it is largely a very positive experience. Apprentices get an opportunity to gain experience and work with people who have been in the job longer and can bring their own life experience to that. That mentoring and training is very valuable. They are getting paid; they earn as they learn, which is something unique about it.”
“The apprentice gets the benefit of the employer training them and providing other experienced employees in that workplace to assist and mentor. There is also a cost to the employer in doing that in taking other employees out of production to assist the apprentice coming through. It is a good system and has worked well for some time and one we want to expand and enhance. It requires adherence from both sides to their obligations.”
“I am meeting representatives of SOLAS this week and I will raise it with them because it is not good enough if that is happening on the ground. I will make sure I engage with them on that matter. To some extent, all of us in any job end up taking on additional tasks or roles that may be slightly outside what we might be tasked to do. However, it should not be at scale, should not be routine and should not be repeated. Employers have no automatic entitlement to take on apprentices. Employers must fulfil their part of the bargain. An apprenticeship is a two-way street; it is not a one-way system at all. The employer gets the benefit of the employee, the apprentice, coming in applying their craft and their skills and bringing their energy and enterprise to the equation.”
“In cases, if they arise, where an employer fails to provide suitable work, despite interventions from the training adviser or SOLAS, SOLAS can institute sanctions progressively. Where necessary, SOLAS can intervene to prohibit an employer from registering apprentices again for an indefinite period. In 2016, the Government introduced a new consortia-led model of apprenticeship, which the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, and I are rolling out further. Under this model, every new apprenticeship programme includes a worker representative on the steering group. Again, that representative advocates for apprentices’ interests, including matters relating to pay and on-the-job training. I am considering models to roll out that governance and strengthen it further.”
“That adviser supports the apprentice through on-the-job and off-the-job training modules. One of the functions of the training adviser is to support apprentices in understanding and exercising their rights, both under the SOLAS apprenticeship code of practice for employers and apprentices and, more broadly, under employment legislation. If an employer fails to pay the agreed rate, or there is any other breach of the requirements, the training adviser can raise that issue directly with the employer. The adviser can intervene on the ground and remind employers of their obligations, including legal ones, such as the requirement to have a written contract in place with the apprentice. Every apprentice who is entitled to a contract should have a contract. That is part of the employment relationship.”
“The Deputy is likely aware that the rate of pay of an apprentice is a contractual matter between the employer and the apprentice, depending on the nature of the apprenticeship. If it is a craft or consortia-led apprenticeship, it may come under a sectoral employment order, but it is sometimes governed by contract. Breaches of the contract, if any, come under the remit of the Payment of Wages Act 1991, which is a matter for my colleague, Deputy Peter Burke, as the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment. One of the key strengths and mechanisms of the apprenticeship system overall is the ETB training adviser. Each apprentice is assigned a training adviser, who serves as a vital link between SOLAS, the education provider, the apprentice and the employer.”
“We will look it across all the different measures and all the different costs across the line. That is what I said. I think that is reasonable and clear. It is still my absolute position. We did not need the alarm, panic, fear and doubt that, I accept, has been planted in students' minds unfairly. I answered a straight question with a straight answer. I said I was going to go into the budget process, as happened the previous three summers. Students have been under a disservice by the reaction that ensued, not by anyone here but in the wider system.”
“I acknowledge that. We have heard talk in the past week about a scheduled increase and a plan and an increase and an announcement of increases. Let us be clear. We have had none of that. There has been a lot of hyperbole. Some of the Opposition leaders and others have hyped it up a little bit. I suggest they listen to the interview that I gave on RTÉ and maybe read the transcript. I have a copy and I could make it available to anyone in the House who wants it. Let us be clear what I said. I said that we have a budgetary situation where the cost-of-living package that was available last year is not available this year, so we will look at the question again. On what do we do instead - I am very clear that I said that - we engage on the cost of education, we explore the budget process and we go in looking for the best outcome for students.”
“Perhaps there is a bit of work to do. I certainly intend to do it over the summer to highlight awareness of those measures. It begs the question. It is something we need to interrogate. I will run awareness campaigns and will engage with TDs in terms of getting information out there but we need to make sure people get the support that is available because a lot of support is being made available and not availed of.”
“I appreciate that. It is worth putting on record some of the increases that are already kicking in for this September. The threshold for 100% payment of the student contribution grant - this is aside from SUSI maintenance grants, which are paid out to help with the living expenses of students - rises from €55,924 to €64,315. That means that 44,500 extra people will now avail of a full student fees on top of the maintenance grant. The 50% student contribution grant - the half-fees paid - threshold goes from €62,000 to €71,300. Almost 4,000 extra people will come into that net. The €500 student contribution grant threshold will go from €100,000 to €115,000. Curiously, last year that measure was there and while 40,000 people were estimated to be eligible for it, only 18,000 applied. I do not know what is going on there.”
“No student should miss out on a chance of education for financial want and if there are students in that situation, I need to see what is going wrong and why the system is failing. In circumstances where we have never paid more grants, we have never had such a high income threshold and we have never made so many contributions, how are people falling through the net? I accept that some are but I want to hear the detail of those cases so we can fix them.”
“I will produce the cost-of-education options paper which I have mentioned. I have also asked my Department to commission a piece of research about what are the levers that we can pull and what are the results of those levers. Ultimately, it is easy to call for things, but why, and what policy outcome do we want to see from them? That is an important question worthy of consideration. That piece of research will not be for this year's budget. That will be over the next 12 months but it will inform our decisions over the term ahead. In the meantime, I will go into budget 2026 this October fighting for students and families. I have heard different stories through the Chamber.”
“That is a reasonably strong political ethos to have and there are different answers to that depending on the different political philosophies. Let us engage on that, honestly and robustly, and have the debate because it is important. Let me, again, reiterate my 100% commitment to the programme for Government in all its forms. It includes multiple commitments. It includes a commitment to continue to reduce the student contribution fee, of course, which I will do over the lifetime of the Government in a financially sustainable way. It also includes commitments to improve SUSI grants and SUSI supports. I intend to go further than that and reform the system. I also want to look at what is impactful, and other measures, targeted or non-targeted, and what is the policy objective that they result in.”
“I acknowledge the Deputy's integrity and interest in this subject. We have had a number of discussions on it in the past. The Deputy commented in the previous debate. Indeed, Deputy McGettigan did also, in fairness. Both Deputies, as spokespersons for their respective parties, engaged in the process constructively and I welcome that. I would ask that we continue that engagement. When I publish the cost-of-education paper this summer, I would invite both of the Deputies and their parties to make submissions to it. Let us make them evidence based. Let us have the debate because it is a debate. Choices are not easy. This is the basis of politics. How do we distribute scarce resources? What decisions do we make about them? Who deserves them more?”
“Everybody under that threshold will get some support and many will get far more fulsome support. Sixty-five thousand students will get a full grant support from Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI. One hundred and forty-three thousand students will have their tuition fees paid by the State. Those thresholds go up, again and again. I intend to revisit all of those measures in October for the following year also.”
“Actually, that is exactly what happened. It was said and it happened in the last three budgets. Exactly the same process is playing out in this year as it did in every other year. I have listened with great sympathy and great interest to, and I have taken note of the detail of, many of the cases raised in debates in the House and elsewhere and a great number of students and their families are already receiving significant supports. Of course, €1,000 is a lot of money and of course they are paying additional fees, but we have to acknowledge that a huge number of students are not paying fees at all or in full because there are already such significant supports. The income thresholds is €115,000. That is a reasonably good salary. It is not controversial to say that. The threshold for student supports is €115,000.”
“I will go into the budget, as will my colleagues, the Minister of State, Deputy Harkin, for the Department, and all the other Ministers across all the other Departments, and fight tooth and nail to get the best outcome for our stakeholders, in my case, students. Of course, we will. That is what we do. However, I cannot predict the outcome of that process. I cannot give the Deputy the budget results in July when the budget is in October, and she knows that. The Deputy also knows the situation in the North, to which I referred earlier in the debate. Her own party has student fees of €5,600, double what they are at their highest in the Republic, and is talking about putting them higher. That is either partitionist or hypocritical, or both.”
“I reiterate what I have said already. No decisions have been made. There is a budgetary arithmetic that has been spelled out by me and others, including the Tánaiste, the Taoiseach, the Minister for Finance and the Minister for public expenditure. It has been spelled out multiple times since that decision was made by the Government. That is the situation we find ourselves in, and that is where we will work towards in the budget. That is normal. If we look at last year, the temporary €1,000 reduction that has been applied in the last three academic years was not announced until October. This is not a new situation. That is why the Deputy’s party had a motion down last year and the year before. This is not novel, unique or unprecedented. This is actually the same situation that prevailed in the last three summers.”
“There are choices and they are not easy choices. We have to take ownership of those choices and bring them forward in the budget. I look forward to that debate.”
“It is also true - the debate tonight has shed light on this - that the costs that students experience are not just about the fees. Of course, the fees are a significant cost but there is also accommodation, transport, materials, books and the income disregard around part-time jobs. There is an awful lot more to this. That is why, put simply, there is no silver bullet. I had a cost-of-education event at Croke Park in April where I met student representatives and many other stakeholders, such as access officers and people who advocate for disadvantaged groups. I listened carefully to them, I listened carefully to the debate tonight, I listened to the debates on radio in recent weeks and I will listen to people over the summer when I continue that consultation. I will publish an options paper that sets out the choices.”
“I believe that those who need more help should get more help. That is a fundamental principle, and if anyone in the House disagrees with me on that, they should please explain why. We know that temporary measures were introduced in the last three budgets and that they provided welcome relief at the time. We also know, and it should be no surprise to anyone in this House albeit it is being portrayed as such, that they were never designed to be permanent solutions. I am approaching budget 2026 by considering what we can do on a permanent basis. That is in line with what is happening across the Government, including the Minister for housing, who was mentioned in the question, and all the other Ministers. We are all considering what we can do on a permanent basis.”
“I thank the Deputy for the question and for the earlier debate. It is going to be a long evening and we are both here for the duration, which is right and proper given it is such an important topic. I want to put on record again my commitment to easing the financial burden on students and families, and my commitment to reducing the cost of education in a way that is sustainable, and not just temporary but permanent; that is equitable and fair, and gives the most to those who need the most; and that is targeted, so we do not just do one-size-fits-all, and that we actually say that we will find the people who really need help and give them real help. Of course, we are going to deliver other measures as well, and we commit to all of our programme for Government commitments. However, I believe in targeted measures.”
“Let me again be crystal clear: no decisions have been made yet. There is a financial framework that we all engage in as we go into the budget. That is exactly what we are doing now. The voices of everybody in this Chamber matter. I will reiterate my commitments and reaffirm my belief in honesty in public debate. Our education system is the foundation of a thriving economy and a flourishing society. It deserves better than political point scoring and hollow promises. Some parties want to make noise-----”
“I heard Deputy Seán Crowe, who I have great time and respect for, talk about how it is a core policy of Sinn Féin to abolish fees. Someone needs to tell the Northern Ireland Executive that because fees are €5,600 across the Border and there was recently talk about bumping them up. That kind of partitionism would make a unionist blush. People see through that kind of rhetoric. They see where that leads us. Let us not speak out of both sides of our mouth. Let us speak truth and tell people that we will do our very best for them in the budget process. We will fulfil our programme for Government commitments, reduce the cost of education, reduce the student contribution fee, target resources at the people who need them and keep our education system at the standard it has always been at.”
“I have taken on board all of the points that have been made in this debate and more. I have talked about Sinn Féin hypocrisy. I have asked questions about its alternative budget but I have not got any answers yet, straight or otherwise. It got its numbers wrong in its budget submission on this measure last year.”
“I want to get away from the negativity and move towards the goal of a higher education system that achieves both excellence and access. Budget 2026 will move us a step forward towards that and build on the progress to date. Rather than scaremongering and whipping up anxiety, we should be clear with people about the supports that already exist. Households with incomes up to €115,000 will benefit from fee grants and supports this September. That is before we do anything else. That is already in the budget today. The SUSI application deadline is this Thursday, 10 July. There are multiple measures already in the system. Households with incomes of up to €115,000 are already eligible for supports. That may not be widely known but it is an historic high. It is the highest it has ever been.”
“At this point in the calendar in 2023, it brought forward this same motion, saying there was uncertainty. At the time, the Minister, Deputy Harris, replied and said what I am going to say now, which is that this will be dealt with in the budget cycle. That is the way it is always done. The point scoring and politics in this motion are disappointing because these kinds of on-the-fly, universal, uncosted, unfunded measures that promise something for everybody and one for everyone in the audience all add up eventually and it is at someone else's expense. We need to be clear about where we are going with this and we need to look to the budget to advance that.”
“I have listened to what was said as regards the measures that would be most impactful and most helpful to the system. This means putting in place policies that are sustainable and that will have an enduring impact rather than making promises on the fly. We need to help students and parents with costs but we need to do it in a costed and sustainable way. That is why our major financial decisions are made through the annual budget process, where choices are weighed up and made in the best interests of our State. That is exactly how any approach to student fees has been taken over the past several years. Decisions are made in the annual budget and benefit students for the coming academic year. Sinn Féin knows that because it brought forward this same motion at the exact same point two years ago.”
“People know that nothing is free and that choices have to be made. They know the budget is the right place to make those choices. Of course, it is important that we listen to students and parents who are struggling with the cost of education and who need real support in the coming college year. I have been hearing those voices ever since my appointment. I have been hearing them in the last number of weeks and months and ever since the day I took office. I have met with the USI and with students' unions and I look forward to meeting with more of them in the weeks and months ahead. Over the summer months, I will continue the consultation I started with an event in Croke Park in April that brought together all the key stakeholders, including the students' unions.”
“The once-off measures were welcome and were needed at the time but they were temporary in nature. I want to move the system onto permanent measures that are sustainable, costed, fair, equitable and baked into the system for evermore. That will be of far greater benefit to families, students and everybody in the system in the long run. Along with my colleagues across both parties and the Independents, I am fully committed to our programme for Government commitments. We will make progress in the coming college year but we have to be straight with people. To govern is to choose. Every decision comes with trade-offs. We have to be honest with people. Unlike the Opposition, I will not pretend every single need can be met in a single budget. The danger of calling for everything for everyone is that you risk standing for nothing at all.”
“Ceann Comhairle, I am trying to speak. I did not interrupt you, Deputy O'Reilly. This is not a policy decision or a move to reallocate moneys. It is not a decision of any kind. It is not a decision at all.”
“We do not gain anything from avoiding those questions. Whether in a radio interview or anywhere else, I have always been straight with people. This is not a policy decision. Deputy O'Reilly can wave her fingers all she likes.”
“The first is as a ladder of opportunity for individuals and their families and the second is as the engine of innovation that drives our economy forward. Our commitments on higher education and student supports in the programme for Government and elsewhere reflect the best of those values. That is why I am committed to ensuring our research and education systems are properly resourced so that they can continue to build the knowledge and capabilities that underpin that success and that prosperity. It is also why I fully intend to deliver on the programme for Government commitment to reduce the student contribution fee over the lifetime of this Government. I will address some of the issues posed by the motion and the events of recent days.”
“It fails to see its real role in our society and our economy. At its heart, my Department is a services Ministry, but it is also much more. It is an economic Ministry and an enabler of everything we want to do. The challenges we are facing, including global trade uncertainty, digital disruption, AI, the green transition and climate change, all demand we lead with the talent, science and skills my Department supports and nurtures. It is here. It is latent in our people. That talent is our greatest national asset and my job is to nurture it and enable it to flourish. The Government is built around that core philosophy and that forward-looking thinking. It is grounded in a belief that education is transformative in two key ways.”
“The virtuous cycle of education and economic growth creates the resources we need to invest in our social systems and infrastructure, improving quality of life and opportunities for all citizens. That investment and enhancement create the resources that support the public good and everything else that we do. This narrative of a failed state we sometimes hear from the Opposition sees education as just another football to be kicked around.”
“I am proud to be in the privileged position of serving in office to push out on that work and to build on that heritage with our colleagues in Government, Fine Gael and the Independents. The story of our country over the past several decades is a remarkable tale of economic transformation and social mobility. It is a history that is inextricably bound up with the expansion of our education system. We went from a primitive agrarian economy to an advanced industrial knowledge economy in the space of a few decades. We did that through sustained investment in education and innovation, and we will continue to do that on my watch and throughout this Government's term.”
“Education is the very bedrock of why I got into politics, why I joined Fianna Fáil and why I made education a key policy platform when I rewrote my party's constitution a few short years ago. I firmly believe in access and excellence in education as a driver of positive change for our country. For me, Fianna Fáil is the party of education. We have led the way on every major expansion of education in Ireland. From the driving transformative ambition of Patrick Hillery to the unprecedented step change of free secondary school education under Donogh O'Malley and the innovation of the Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, in establishing a dedicated Department of further and higher education in the first place, we have relentlessly and consistently pushed out the frontier.”
“Of course I will address my remarks to the people in the Gallery, as I always do, and indeed to the people of the nation, whom I serve. I welcome the students in the Gallery tonight. I have met many of them already and look forward to meeting those I have not yet met in the course of their term ahead and my term ahead. I also welcome the debate. I agree with some, but not by any means all, of what was said. I reject some of the cheap populism I have heard just now but I do agree with some of the points that have been made about the priority of education and its position as a fundamental building block for progress as a nation, a society and an economy. I welcome the motion this evening as a timely opportunity to discuss all of that and the central role of further and higher education in our society and economy.”
“— while free-fees eligible students are responsible for the base rate of the student contribution fee, many receive full or partial support through SUSI grants based on their eligibility; — recent years have seen significant enhancements to the SUSI grant scheme, including the introduction of the €500 Student Contribution Grant, which permanently reduces the student contribution for eligible students, alongside a range of additional supports available through SUSI; — the Minister for Further and Higher Education Research Innovation and Science will bring a long-term student accommodation strategy to Government later this year with the explicit objective of increasing supply and reducing the reliance on the private rental market; — engagement with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is ongoing to address the impact on students of the proposed rental reforms; and — engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitisation is ongoing regarding National Development Plan funding for student accommodation; and further notes that options for revising student supports, including adjustments to the student contribution fee rate and SUSI student contribution supports, will be considered as part of Budget 2026.”
“I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "recognises that: — the Government is committed to easing the burden for students and their families; — the Government will progress its Programme for Government commitments to improve supports for students by increasing maintenance grants, reducing the student contribution fee throughout its term, and developing a multi-annual plan to deliver new student accommodation; and — stable, predictable policy making should be grounded in the annual budget process cycle, which is currently underway, this is in keeping with decisions on student contribution fees over the past three years; acknowledges: — the transformative impact the expansion of third-level and higher education has had on generations of Irish people, our society and our economic success; — that Ireland leads the way internationally in education, outperforming the European Union (EU)-27 average in third-level educational attainment across all age groups, and in all but one age group, Ireland exceeds the EU average by more than 20 percentage points; — the step change in research funding since 1997, through the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions and Research Ireland building the foundations of our economic success with major research institutes across our higher education network; and — the unlocking of a €1.5 billion funding package through new National Training Fund legislation in the coming months that will include increased core funding for higher education and capital funding to help build on that economic and social progress; welcomes: — that the Government will advance measures that will permanently reduce student contribution fees in an equitable manner, moving away from reliance on temporary subventions; — that the Government has already approved the major changes to the Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) grant, with expanded eligibility from September 2025, with the special rate maintenance threshold rising to €27,400 in line with social welfare increases, all other maintenance and contribution thresholds will increase by 15 per cent, and thresholds for postgraduate and part-time fee support will also be raised; — the unprecedented rise in the SUSI income threshold to €115,000, the highest level ever, broadening access to supports including the student contribution grant; — this means that 80 per cent of Irish households are now eligible for full or partial supports towards the cost of higher education; — that only 20 per cent of households may be liable to pay the full student contribution fee; and — ahead of Budget 2026, an options paper will be published, which will identify costs and potential impacts of various policy options aimed at reducing the cost of tertiary education, this paper will help inform decision-making ahead of Budget 2026; commends: — the Short-Term Activation Programme for driving the development of student accommodation, with 116 beds nearing completion at Maynooth University, and proposals for a further 493 beds at University College Dublin and 405 beds at Dublin City University currently at tender evaluation stage, this progress builds on the delivery of additional units across several other universities; — the promotional campaigns that have significantly boosted the supply of student accommodation through the Rent-a-Room Relief scheme, which enables homeowners to earn up to €14,000 per annum by renting vacant bedrooms thanks to these efforts, approximately 4,000 bedrooms are available to rent throughout the country; — the introduction of the Rent Tax Credit to ease accommodation costs that was launched at €500 in 2023 and doubled to €1,000 in 2025, this credit is available to students in purpose-built student accommodation, private rentals, and digs, and can also be claimed by parents on behalf of their student children for eligible rents paid since 2022; — the Programme for Government commitment to further progressively increase the Rent Tax Credit which will directly benefit students and their parents; and — the allocation of funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund to support students from Traveller and Roma communities, as well as those with experience of the care system, with the cost of accommodation when living independently while attending third-level education; notes that: — almost all full-time undergraduate students benefit from full coverage of their third level tuition fees through the State's Free Fees Initiative, and that almost half of all students receive full or partial State support for their student contribution fee.”