A chara, - The executive of the Irish Federation of University Teachers is appalled at the severity of the cuts which the Minister for Education and Science, Noel Dempsey, has visited on the universities.
The motivation for this action is hard to comprehend and it appears that the universities have been singled out for this level of treatment.
What is not hard to comprehend, however, is the devastating impact that these cuts will, if implemented, have on the quality of service that the universities can offer to students.
In recent years, despite modest levels of resources in international terms, Irish universities have made a huge commitment to quality in research, teaching and learning. They aspire to reach and maintain the highest international standards, and these goals have been accepted by Government as appropriate to an information society.
Last year the universities' ability to pursue their research goals was severely hampered by a Government "pause" on funding. The resultant and understandable outcry from many sectors of the economy produced a welcome improvement in funding this year.
But this improvement in research funding appears to be entirely at the expense of the other core aspect of a university's business, that of teaching and learning.
The universities will not have enough money next year to run existing programmes. The cuts are so deep that vacancies may have to remain unfilled, contracts may not be renewed and library services may be curtailed or cancelled.
Many of the labour-intensive components of teaching and learning - small-group teaching, seminars, field courses - will have to be dropped in the absence of people to provide them.
Similarly, universities have made great strides in improving access to higher education for a variety of less advantaged groups. It is hard to see how these services can be sustained in this changed climate. The list of what will not be available in the future is potentially a long one.
In short, the cuts are an assault on the quality of the educational experience that the universities can offer.
It is a bizarre position for a Minister to take, given the emphasis in "Sustaining Progress" on improvements in service and service delivery. The modest increases awarded to staff under benchmarking are predicated on such improvements. Yet progress will not be sustained unless these cuts are reversed.
Ten years of progress are at stake. It makes no sense to squander what has been achieved in such a cavalier manner. - Is mise,
DALTÚN Ó CEALLAIGH, General Secretary, Irish Federation
of University Teachers, Merrion Square, Dublin 2.