Budget could herald shift in policy on college fees

TEACHER'S PET: Will the forthcoming "draconian" Budget change Government policy on college fees?

Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe is sticking to his line that the rich should pay college fees from next autumn. But he has also signalled there is only so much pain that the average taxpayer can be expected to bear. With income levies, public sector levies and higher taxes to come in the April Budget, those on average incomes will struggle to fund the €5,000 or so for college fees.

Significantly, the Minister signalled that any proposals to impose fees on, say, the children of a garda married to a teacher would have to be “family proofed”.

Essentially, the overall financial outgoings of the family home – plus presumably the value of their property – would have be assessed before any fees were imposed.

It is a sensible idea but one which could be difficult and expensive to implement. The Minister is due to present his proposals to Cabinet shortly after the tax hikes in the Budget are announced.

Our best guess is that fees will return but the threshold for payment will be quite high.

The Minister and his party would face a huge political backlash if he were to impose fees for those on average income just weeks before the local and European elections.

Our hunch is that fees will only be levied on the rich. There will also be a new graduate tax, where students repay fees through the tax system once they reach a certain income level after graduation.

* Belvedere College is rightly lauded for its rugby tradition – but the school also has contacts at the highest level in the Premier League.

Next month, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson will answer questions on his glorious career at a special dinner at the Croke Park Conference Centre.

Tickets for the April 1st event, priced at €150 each, will support the school’s scholarship scheme for disadvantaged pupils. About 10 per cent of Belvedere’s pupils enter via the scholarship scheme, a much higher percentage than in other fee-paying schools.

So how did the school manager persuade Sir Alex to help out?

Apparently, the Great Man is a close friend of Father Joe Dargan, the former rector at the school.

This is the second occasion he has offered to support Belvedere; a similar event was held five years ago.

The Ferguson dinner is a coup for the college and its headmaster Gerry Foley, who has forged strong links between Belvedere and many primary schools in the inner city.

* Despite all the talk of burning anger over the pension levy, Batt O’Keeffe received a very warm reception from the 500 delegates at the Institute of Guidance Counsellors Conference in Kilkenny last Thursday. Indeed, his address to the delegates was punctuated by applause. It makes one wonder; are the teaching unions talking up the level of discontent among their members?