Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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196. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the estimated cost of taking account for the interaction between increasing the income threshold for SUSI grants by 10%, increasing the SUSI maintenance grant by 10% and reducing student contribution charges by €500, respectively; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27511/20]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be aware that there are various income thresholds used depending on the type of grant, family size etc. While SUSI has statistics on those students who have applied for grant support and can estimate with some degree of certainty, what impact changes to the thresholds might have for those students on lower income levels, the accuracy of its estimates become less reliable at the higher income levels. Prospective applicants on higher incomes may not have applied for support as their income was above the relevant threshold. As such, it is not possible to accurately cost the number of additional students who may qualify for support, if the thresholds are increased.

Allowing for the limitations regarding the accuracy of the costings, it is estimated that a 10% increase would cost in the region of €20m.

The above figures do not include any changes to the income thresholds for the special rate of maintenance grants which are linked to long-term social welfare payments nor do they include any changes to the post-graduate income thresholds.

The estimated cost of increasing the student maintenance grant rates by 10% would cost in the region of €17m.

Under the Department’s free fees schemes, the Exchequer provides funding toward the tuition fee costs of eligible undergraduate Higher Education students with students paying the student contribution.

The student contribution fee is currently set at €3,000 per annum and can be paid in instalments.  The State pays the contribution in full or part, through SUSI, for approximately 44% of students eligible for free fees funding.

Based on data in relation to 19/20 and expected demographic increase the estimated additional cost to the Exchequer for reducing the student contribution at the rate of  €500 for the 2020/21 academic year is €40.3m.

The above figures are the estimated net cost to the Exchequer factoring in the subsequent estimated reduction in the SUSI Student Grant budget. 

The costs for the Exchequer of reducing the student contribution would increase in line with the demographic increases expected in the coming years up to 2030.

My Department is undertaking a comprehensive economic review currently which is progressing under the European Commission DG Reform’s Structural Reform Support Programme.  This review is focussed on Increasing the Future Sustainability of Higher and Further Education Provision in Ireland. The review encompasses an assessment of the funding options for higher education included in the 2016 (Cassells) Report of the Expert Group on Future Funding of Higher Education which includes the student contribution charge. The study is scheduled to be substantially complete in Q4 2020.