IRELAND: Students to pay more after fees reversal

Education Minister Ruairi Quinn performed a U-turn on a key election promise last week by admitting he would not reverse a EUR500 (US$719) hike in college registration fees. And the minister refused to rule out the introduction of higher education fees and further student charges, another pre-election pledge, writes Edel O'Connell for The Independent.

The Labour Party minister admitted that the student registration charge will rise to EUR2,000 per student in September, despite promising before the general election that he would not support the EUR500 increase. Quinn refused to be drawn on whether there would be a re-introduction of fees to offset a funding crisis in the third-level sector. The government is now expected to make a decision on that by the end of the year.

If fees, loans or new charges are brought in, they would kick in from the September 2012 academic year. Quinn signed a Union of Students in Ireland pledge during the election campaign that Labour would not reintroduce third-level fees in government, or support an increase in the Student Services Charge.
Full report on The Independent site