Students to be allowed to earn more than €2,000 extra without losing grant access

Students will be able to earn more than €2,000 extra during their holidays without losing access to higher education grants under plans set to be approved by the Cabinet on Tuesday.

Minister for Higher and Further Education Simon Harris is to bring a memo to Government outlining changes to the student grant scheme that will increase the holiday earnings income disregard from €4,500 to €6,552.

The Coalition hopes that in addition to providing an incentive to earn more for students, the measure will alleviate staffing difficulties currently being experienced in a host of industries where students commonly gain seasonal employment – including in the tourism and hospitality trade in the busy summer months.

The reforms are part of a broader shake-up of the grant system, which is set to see all maintenance payments will increase by €200 from September. The adjacency rate has also been amended, meaning more students will qualify for a higher level of funding towards their third-level education. Mr Harris is due to announce the changes after Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting.

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The Minister will also bring a memo on assisting displaced Ukrainians in accessing third-level education. Under the reformed scheme, the students will be treated as Irish students and will be able to access financial assistance through the Erasmus programme.

Cabinet will also consider plans from Minister for Arts Catherine Martin for a €2.6 million support scheme for the night-time economy. The scheme is designed to encourage off-peak entertainment in venues across the country, in turn driving footfall in cities later in the evening and at night.

Pubs, nightclubs, cafes and other premises can apply for to host a minimum of four events, with grants of up to €10,000 available per application. The intention is to support live music, comedy, dance, literature, theatrical productions, craft events and artistic exhibitions.

The scheme was developed in consultation with vintners and restaurant groups, including the Licensed Vintners’ Association, the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland and the Restaurants’ Association of Ireland. It will have two strands – under one for licensed premises events are to take place from Monday to Thursday from 6pm. A separate funding stream for unlicensed premises will support events from Monday to Sunday from 6pm, with a commitment to open until at least 9pm. The scheme is due to open to applications from Tuesday.

Ms Martin is also to brief colleagues on plans to increase the borrowing ceiling for tourism body Fáilte Ireland.

Cabinet will also consider a proposal from Minister for Justice Helen McEntee to sign up to an EU directive on countering violence against women and domestic violence.

Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien will seek Cabinet approval to publish legislation underpinning the defective blocks remediation scheme, and he will also bring a memo with proposed amendments to the Electoral Reform Bill in relation to electoral integrity.

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Martin Heydon will bring a memo on farm safety initiatives for this year. The farm safety measures are focused on changing farm culture and building on progress, which has seen farm fatalities drop from 20 on average a year to 10 last year. It will come with a price tag of €2.25 million.

The Cabinet is also set to consider the annual reports of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, DAA and An Post.