BANKS SHOULD help students to acquire computers, Tom Hayes (FG, Tipperary South) told the Dáil. "Irish banks offer students overdrafts, and I question the wisdom of this."
Assisting students to acquire laptops would be a far better gesture than giving an overdraft which could be spent on parties. Mr Hayes was speaking during the resumed debate on the Student Support Bill.
Charlie O'Connor (FF, Dublin South West) said that some third-level students were forced to go abroad, particularly to the UK, because there were insufficient places in the Republic.
"The department should examine how such courses could be provided here, because many deputies meet young people who make this point every summer."
Cyprian Brady (FF, Dublin Central) accused some Opposition speakers of being negative in their comments about education.
Considerable strides had been made, he said. "When I was in school, there were raffles and sales of work. These fund-raising functions were organised to raise funds for charities or specific items for the school and are not a new phenomenon."
Joanna Tuffy (Labour, Dublin Mid West) suggested a general grants scheme to cover everybody.
"It is unfair that part-time students have to pay fees for third-level courses even though they cannot apply to participate in grant schemes. Equal access to education is not relevant solely to the latest crop of school-leavers, about 50 per cent of whom attend third-level education."
Joan Burton (Labour, Dublin West) said there was a serious deficiency in the teaching of maths and science.
"People who write books are interviewed on the Late Late Show. People who make millions of euro as business people, and people who have ideas in areas such as taxation, as I do occasionally, are interviewed on programmes," she said. "One seldom sees Gerry Ryan, Pat Kenny or others rushing to interview the latest maths star, even though Pat Kenny was originally a distinguished engineer."
