Representatives of national students’ union not invited to accommodation strategy launch

The Oireachtas committee on further and higher education was told that representatives from AMLÉ were not invited to the strategy launch.

Representatives of the national students’ union were not invited to attend the official launch of the national strategy to build and develop student accommodation, an Oireachtas committee has heard.

The second National Student Accommodation Strategy was launched last month by the Department of Further and Higher Education and aims to develop 42,000 student beds by 2035.

Officials from the Department of Further and Higher Education, the Department of Housing, and the Higher Education Authority briefed the Oireachtas committee on further and higher education on the plan on Wednesday.

The president of Munster Technological University recently told the committee that housing is now the biggest barrier to access to education in this country, Labour senator Laura Harmon said.

“I think that's a pretty serious statement to make.” 

Ms Harmon said it is “very hard” for her to have faith in the latest accommodation strategy, as a former president of AMLÉ, formerly known as the Union of Students Ireland.

I was president of the national students' union 11 years ago, and we had a student accommodation crisis then, and it's gotten much worse now.

The launch of the plan was also delayed, with the first strategy having expired in 2024, and opposition spokespeople were not invited to attend its launch, Ms Harmon said.

“I don't believe that opposition spokespersons were invited to the launch. I had the president of [AMLÉ] ringing me saying he got a call from a journalist to find out about the launch that day. They weren't invited.” 

Sherry Fitzgerald recently published a report, identifying a current deficit of 39,000 student beds in Ireland, she added.

“The current strategy provides for 42,000 in nine years' time. So, is that ambitious enough, in terms of the growing population?” she asked.

In response, Paul Lemass of the Department of Further and Higher Education, said in the lifetime of the previous strategy, 16,000 purpose-built student accommodation beds were developed. 

However, it was interrupted for two years by covid, he added.

“I would argue there's extraordinary circumstances there.” 

The new plan was also delayed as it waited for sign off on the national development plan and the allocation of capital funding, which concluded in 2025, as well as the conclusion of rent control legislation, he added.

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“Students’ unions were consulted,” Mr Lemass said. 

“I personally met with three representatives of three separate unions. I'm sure AMLE was invited to that.” 

The 42,000 target is based on publicly published figures as well as the scale of growth between now and 2035, he added.

“It also includes a backlog to accommodate the fact that we recognise, in the current situation, there are people commuting too long.”

Mr Lemass told the committee the new accommodation strategy "explicitly calls out" that there are 15,000 students currently travelling more than 90 minutes to or from college. 

"We're planning that in the future, that backlog in demand would be included in the 42,000 [target]." 

It is "recognised and academically researched" that commutes longer than an hour and a half do have an effect on people's ability to participate in student life, he added.