News & Events

Minister for Education Batt O'Keefe embraced the message of free third-level education ahead of the launch of the Dublin Region Higher Education Alliance which took place last week.

At an early-morning meeting of students from third-level institutions in the Dublin region, which was also attended by Lord Mayor of Dublin Eibhlin Byrne, Minister O'Keefe was caught off guard - having expected a photoshoot with student representatives from the 8 colleges in the Dublin Region, he was surprised when they arrived wearing slogans against third-level fees.

ITB Students' Union President, LesleyAnn Flynn, said 'we have to take any opportunity we can to deliver our message of a fair and equitable system of access to third-level education to the Minister. While we are delighted that he has embraced us this morning, we will be working constantly over the coming weeks to make sure he embraces our fundamental message - that education is a right, not a privilege, and that our knowledge based economy can only suffer if the Minister's plans to reintroduce third-level fees come to fruition.'