FG: Foreign student plan worth €900m yearly

DOUBLING the number of foreign students in our colleges could reap an additional €900 million a year and create 6,000 jobs, according to Fine Gael plans announced yesterday.

Their policy document points to a slight drop in international student numbers at Irish third-level colleges last year but aspires to raising the overall numbers in further and higher education, private colleges and English language institutions to 80,000 over five years.

To achieve this, party education spokesman Brian Hayes said Fine Gael would appoint a dedicated minister of state in the Department of Education with a €50 million budget to target students from a handful of world regions.