Missed opportunity, university students insist

University students have called the Budget a “missed opportunity” where only one of their 22 proposals was adopted.

The University Students’ Council (KSU) said the University required more financial autonomy from government funding and the Budget should have included greater incentives for businesses to invest in the University.

“It is only in this way the University can start looking to more long-term projects, allowing it to add greater value to the provision of a higher level of education through the availability of better resources for students.”

Describing the investment of €3.5 million in the University as “commendable”, KSU, however, questioned whether this was enough in light of rising numbers of students. “KSU believes this increase may not be entirely sufficient for the overall infrastructure required by the University to cater for the increased number of students.”

KSU said it had also proposed an interest-free loan for students going on Erasmus programmes to help those who could not afford the experience. It presented a detailed report, which showed the cost of the plan would be minimal relative to the benefits to be reaped from the students. “Unfortunately, this proposal was not taken into consideration despite the fact it would be highly beneficial to the student body overall.”

While it understood the need for fiscal consolidation and a reduction of the country’s debt and deficit levels, KSU said this could have been done better by incorporating the proposals brought forward by all members of civil society.

The council praised some initiatives, such as the promotion of energy-efficient cars, the weekly allowance for training and the setting up of a fund for creativity.