Call for Trinity and UCD to amalgamate

Trinity College and University College Dublin should be amalgamated to create one of the world’s top 10 institutions, it was claimed today.

Former European Commissioner and Attorney General Peter Sutherland said the universities should join forces in order to compete internationally.

Mr Sutherland, chairman of the London School of Economics, also warned the Government cannot sustain seven universities without risking one going bust.

“At the moment both are in the top 100 with one in the top 50. Would we have a top 20 player or even a top 10 player to compete in the big leagues and if so wouldn’t that be the best thing for Ireland?” he said.

“Surely, with a bit of imagination (or even ’innovation’) this could be achieved without compromising the rich and very different histories and traditions of these important national institutions.”

Last year Trinity College was ranked 49th in the world with UCD in 89th.

Mr Sutherland warned Ireland has too many universities to compete seriously on comprehensive world-class research, education, postgraduate training and research.

He said Ireland was deluding itself by refusing to re-introduce third-level fees.

“I have some insight into the cost of running such entities and the ferocity of the competition and personally I can’t see how Ireland can afford this,” he said.

“We can have seven universities but they cannot all be world class and full service as defined above.”

Launching the Irish Undergraduate Awards at the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin, Mr Sutherland called for radical higher education reform including giving universities more freedom to hire and fire to keep their best performers.

“Our universities must have the flexibility to differentially reward their best performers, to incentivise those who are willing to take on academic leadership positions, and the flexibility to recruit, reward and terminate contracts that is the norm in the UK and the US,” he said.

“This is surely an acid test of our commitment to public sector reform as a whole.”

Mr Sutherland, Chairman of Goldman Sachs International, suggested pay should be based on performance and warned it is virtually impossible to be sacked from a university.

He went on to praise a Trinity College UCD initiative to create sustainable jobs in a smart economy through partnerships between the universities, businesses and state agencies.

The Government retracted their threat to introduce college fees last October following pressure from the Green Party.

Union of Students in Ireland (USI) Deputy President Dan O’Neill said the best way to fund education is through a comprehensive tax system.

“Third level fees are a hindrance and prevent many people from attending college,” Mr O’Neill said.

“USI remains against the return of fees in any guise and we will continue the campaign to cap registration fees,” Mr O’Neill added.