Ninth Level Ireland

“Student loans are unlikely to be used to bridge a chronic underfunding in the country’s third-level sector, Higher Education Minister Simon Harris has said. Speaking at the launch of a three-year plan for his department, Mr Harris said he was committed to delivering a sustainable model to allow universities and colleges be funded adequately, especially when more and more people want to attend …” (more)

[Daniel McConnell, Irish Examiner, 8 March]

“The third-level sector is currently underfunded, and a system of student loans should not be introduced, each of the major parties’ spokespeople on education agree. However, the parties remain divided on how best to address such a funding deficit, identified in the landmark Cassells report, first published in 2016 …” (more)

[Jess Casey, Irish Examiner, 28 January]

“The provost, Patrick Prendergast, has said that he is now in favour of an ‘income-contingent student loan scheme’ as his preferred option proposed in the Cassells report to plug the gap in third-level education funding. The provost made this announcement in an interview with the Sunday Business Post where he also warned that Trinity may have to cut student numbers to improve its position in the global rankings …” (more)

[Finn Purdy, Trinity News, 22 September]

“More than 20 years after the abolition of higher education fees, Ireland now has the second highest student contribution fees in Europe. This system is often referred to as having ‘free fees’. Our politicians have a great sense of humour …” (more)

[Laura Harmon, University Times, 16 September]

“Provost Patrick Prendergast has warned that higher education could become a ‘crisis issue’ if the government fails to invest in the sector soon, arguing that loans schemes ‘should be investigated further’ as universities battle intractable financial problems …” (more)

[Donal MacNamee, University Times, 12 August]

“A formal loan scheme for third-level students will not be introduced and college fees will be frozen, the Government has pledged. Minister for Education Joe McHugh said university registration fees will not go beyond €3,000 per year if Fine Gael is returned to Government after the next general election …” (more)

[Jennifer Bray, Irish Times, 11 August]

“Fine Gael is promising not to hike college fees or bring in controversial student loans to be repaid after graduation. Education Minister Joe McHugh has made a significant pledge not to increase university registration fees beyond €3,000 per year if Fine Gael is returned to government after the next general election …” (more)

[Philip Ryan, Independent, 11 August]

“Fianna Fáil leader Micheal Martin made headlines yesterday morning when, at a prominent higher education funding conference, he confessed that, if in government, Fianna Fáil would not abolish student fees, and would consider the introduction of student loans. This bombshell, contained within an otherwise lengthy and relatively uncontroversial speech, is likely to provoke cries of derision from across the political spectrum …” (more)

[Jack Synnott, University Times, 18 July]

“It was around this time three years ago that the Cassells report – a groundbreaking review of potential higher education funding strategies – was officially released. Three years later, and still the government has failed to act. There’s been talk. Committees have convened. Options have been discussed. But the government has consistently failed to deliver on the report’s most crucial recommendation: action …” (more)

[Jack Synnott, University Times, 15 July]

“Further increases to student fees or the introduction of a student loan scheme have been ruled out, the Irish Examiner can reveal. In a ‘highly significant’ development, the Government has rejected two of three recommendations contained in a 2016 report into how a gaping hole in third-level funding is to be filled …” (more)

[Daniel McConnell, Irish Examiner, 27 March]

“The presidents of all third-level students’ unions as well as the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) have come together to call for protests to demand increased funding for colleges in Ireland in an open letter …” (more)

[Ross Malervy, University Times, 11 March]

“Sir, – We are representatives of the students across Ireland – students keen to gain skills and qualifications and play our part in building Ireland’s future. The proposal of any kind of student loan scheme in Ireland is wholly unacceptable and is widely understood as an inequitable way to fund education, as well as having been consistently shown to be a failure when implemented in the UK and Australia and contributing to significant deficits in the public purse …” (more)

[Síona Cahill and 27 others, Irish Times, 11 March]

“Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent): To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his position on the future funding of third level education; if student loans will be ruled out as a means of raising funding for the sector; the details of the recent application to the European Commission to carry out a detailed economic analysis of third level education funding here; and if he will make a statement on the matter …” (more)

[Dáil written answers, 29 January]

“Controversial proposals for a student loan scheme to fund third-level education are being referred by the Government to the European Commission for detailed economic analysis. The move is set to push back any decision on a future funding model for higher education by at least a year …” (more)

[Carl O’Brien, Irish Times, 19 January]

“Graduates here overpaid nearly £8m in student loans in five years. Overpayments have been rising steadily, with thousands of people affected, figures show. A student organisation said it was ‘deeply troubling’ …” (more)

[Allan Preston, Belfast Telegraph, 29 December]

“Labour Party Education spokesperson, Senator Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, has said that the new Minister for Education, Joe McHugh, needs to rule out student loan schemes. Senator Ó Ríordáin said: ‘The Government has been sitting on the report carried out by Peter Cassells into the future of higher education funding for months now. Three options were laid on the table, one of which is publicly funded higher education. The onus is on Ministers McHugh and Mitchell O’Connor to get the ball rolling on this extremely important issue …'” (more)

[The Labour Party, 15 October]

“Less than 18 months ago, Ned Costello, the then-CEO of the Irish Universities Association (IUA), told The University Times that a student loan scheme was the best solution to the higher education sector’s intractable funding problem. The heads of each of the seven universities were unanimous on the issue – and, as the representative body of Ireland’s universities, it was up to the IUA to see that it be implemented …” (more)

[University Times, 9 September]

“A university president has called for a radical new approach to third-level funding that would limit the number of students paid for by the State, while others, who could afford it, would be liable for full fees. Professor Brian MacCraith of Dublin City University (DCU) said there were ‘people who can afford to go to university, in the same way as they can afford to pay for private schools’ …” (more)

[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 7 September]

“Universities will no longer lobby the government to introduce a student loan scheme, marking a complete U-turn in their approach to the higher education funding crisis. In an interview with The University Times, the head of the Irish Universities Association (IUA), Jim Miley, said that universities are becoming ‘agnostic on loans’ …” (more)

[Eleanor O’Mahony, University Times, 6 September]

“Northern Ireland’s outstanding student debt stands at almost £3.3bn. The total tuition fee and maintenance loan debt has risen 10% since last year when it stood at just under £3bn. Only about one in six people in Northern Ireland have fully repaid their student loans …” (more)

[Robbie Meredith, BBC News, 15 June]