Higher charges 'may force students to drop out'

A SHARP increase in college registration charges could lead to some students failing to return for the new term, union leaders warned yesterday.

At a Dublin city centre protest against the 69% rise, student leaders demanded a meeting with Education Minister Noel Dempsey who revealed a package of changes to student support schemes and charges less than two weeks ago.

Colm Jordan, president of the Union of Students in Ireland, claimed the increase from 396 to 670 a year showed his members were being sold down the river by the Government. To illustrate his point he released 69 bright yellow ducks into the Liffey during a rally near O'Connell Bridge attended by up to 100 mainly student representatives.