USI attacks grants ‘scandal’

THE Government has been accused of presiding over a feast-and-famine situation in the difference between a TD’s salary and maintenance grants for third level students.

According to the Union of Students in Ireland (USI), TDs now earn 25 times the amount set aside for each of the 40,000 low-income students in third level education. Official figures suggest the cost of going to college has risen to €7,500 a year.

The average weekly earnings for a Dáil politician, including expenses and allowances, are €2,200. This compares to a basic student maintenance grant of just €86 a week, based on spreading the €3,110 payment over the 36-week college year.