The report on equality in third-level education published this week tells us little we do not already know. Only 20 per cent of students from poorer backgrounds go to college, compared to 97 per cent from the highest earning families. Meanwhile, the State continues to buttress the better-off with free tuition fees. Over 20 per cent of the nearly €400 million spent annually on student supports is used to subsidise students whose parents earn over €70,000 per year.
The report ranges over familiar terrain. The third-level grants system is again exposed as grossly unfair and inefficient. Over 20 per cent of students, whose parents are employers and managers, secure grants. Some 25 per cent of students from farms of over 200 acres get grants. Remarkably, one in seven of students from the higher professional category secures a grant.
The report was commissioned by the Minister for Education, Mr Dempsey, almost a year ago at a time when he had pushed the issue of college fees to the top of the political agenda. In May, his plan to re-introduce fees was abandoned, although he did manage to secure €42million in extra student supports.
This report is now being published against a very different political backdrop. Even Mr Dempsey acknowledges that the issue of fees is now off the agenda for the foreseeable future. The irony is that the report produced by his department makes a very persuasive case for their return. It states: " The basic equation is this: the more students from high-earning families can contribute towards the cost of tuition fees, the more money will be available to improve supports for students from lower-income families."
Despite his commendable reforming zeal on the issue, Mr Dempsey now finds that his room for manoeuvre on the issue is very limited. It may well be that the major OECD report on third-level education in the State - which has just begun - will back the return of fees. But even this would make little practical difference. The coalition partners and virtually the entire opposition remain vehemently opposed to it.
Mr Dempsey is promising long-overdue reform of the grant system, although this too may be problematic. Farmers and business interests have already voiced their opposition to what is proposed by the Department of Education report. Essentially, this would see all grant applicants assessed not just on their income, but also on their assets. It would mean the end to the current bizarre situation where the sons and daughters of very wealthy farmers can secure a grant while the children of the farm worker are turned away.
The Minister should press ahead with his plan for reform. Control of the grant system should be handed over to one agency with the expertise to means-test and assess all applicants on the basis of their real income. The current system is grossly unfair to the compliant taxpayer and helps to bolster educational inequality.