Galway students look for grant cut reversal

By LIAM CORCORAN STRUGGLING third-level students in Co Galway are welcoming the news that the government decision to cut their grants by up to 60 per cent is to be challenged in the High Court.Changes to the student grant scheme in the 2011 budget mean that students living under 45km (28 miles) from their place of education will no longer be entitled to the full grant rate. The minimum distance was formerly 24km, meaning that many grant-aided students attending college in Galway from the Tuam area will now see their grant cut from €3,120 to €1,250.The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) is supporting three students who are challenging the decision in a High Court action that is being regarded as a test case for those in a similar situation around the country. The organisation is claiming that the cuts are in breach of the Student Support Act 2011.Students from Tuam and Headford will no longer qualify for the higher (non-adjacent) grant rate. Some disadvantaged students on the special rate of payment will see their grant cut from €6,100 to €2,445.President of NUIG Students' Union Emmet Connolly said, 'Tuam will be particularly affected with the grant changes. Students living in Tuam or Headford will now be regarded as the same as those living in Salthill. There is a ring of students around Galway who are currently facing very tough decisions about whether they will be able to return to college in September.'At the time of the budget, the government justified the 60 per cent cuts by pointing to improvements in public transport nationally. However, Emmet Connolly argued that while this may be true in Dublin, the suggestion that public transport between Tuam and Galway has improved dramatically in the last 30 years is 'simply not true.' 'There might be a Luas line for people attending college in Dublin, but colleges in Galway have a largely rural student base. Over 40 per cent of the students in NUIG are on grants at the moment and these funds are essential to them. 60 per cent cuts were not brought in for the public sector or pensioners, so why should students have to deal with it?'Student groups in Galway are claiming that the heavy cuts were introduced too suddenly and did not give students a chance to plan for other ways of funding their education.Applications for the Higher Education Grant Scheme for the coming academic year can be made up until August 31.