Madam, – Sarah Carey’s concerns about the Labour Party’s commitment to social justice would have been quickly assuaged had she checked her facts first (Opinion, 25 March 2009).
She is correct in pointing out that the road to third-level begins even before a child starts school, and that early intervention is essential if we are to give every child a genuine opportunity to get there. This is why, even before abolishing the university fees that were an obstacle to PAYE families, Labour established the Early Start pre-school programme for disadvantaged children.
This programme in disadvantaged areas is exactly what Ms Carey advocates. If she is unaware of its existence, this may be because it has languished for years as a perpetual “pilot project” under successive Fianna Fáil ministers for education. For the Labour government, this programme was as important as abolishing third-level fees. Our vision was, and still is, one of an education system that places no arbitrary limits – such as background, class or income – on a child’s potential.
For conservatives, there is always a “trade-off” within education itself, rather than between spending on education and, say, giving tax breaks for property speculation. In this case, the false choice offered is between universal third-level and pre-school education. Labour advocates both, because we believe it is worth investing in the education of all our citizens.
Ms Carey makes no reference to the investment priorities of those who have spent the past 12 years in government. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Sarah Carey argues that the re-introduction of third-level fees will have little effect on social inequality. She argues that working-class participation rates at university, even without fees, remain very low. However, her point that students should contribute to the cost of their education, because on a personal level they “earn a good rate of return on their education”, has to be qualified. Graduates who earn above-average incomes will fall into higher income tax brackets. Those who work in the private sector contribute to profits which, theoretically, are also taxed. So all who benefit from higher education can be made repay their debt to society through the tax system.
Ireland bought into the neo-liberal, free-market economic model which involves low taxes. The Government has now been forced by the crisis this model engendered to consider raising general taxation. It has the opportunity to close the tax loopholes, address the issue of tax havens and put in place a progressive tax system to allow society, not students, to pay for tuition fees. – Yours, etc,