IRELAND: Fees for better-off are back on agenda

The return of third-level fees - which were abolished in the mid-1990s - is back on the agenda as the government seeks to ensure universities are properly funded, Minister for Education Batt O'Keeffe told The Irish Times. However O'Keeffe stressed that there was no question of imposing new charges on those who could not afford them. Any new charges would target better-off families and those with incomes well above the national average.

The Minister stressed that any move in this direction would require Government approval.
While the programme for government promised no return of college tuition fees, O'Keeffe said this commitment was predicated on robust economic growth of 4.5 per cent. Clearly, the economic parameters had now changed, he said. He said his department would conduct a "forensic audit" of third-level spending before making any decision.

There is a growing belief in government circles that better-off parents should be asked to support much-needed investment in higher education through fee reintroduction, and for a graduate tax scheme based on the Australian model, which sees graduates repay the cost of higher education through their taxes.
Full report on the Irish Times site