Td wants midlands university but not necessrily at athlone it

Fine Gael Deputy for Longford/Westmeath James Bannon has called for consideration to be given for a university to be established in the midlands.

“With students heading back to college or embarking on their college career, we again see students from Longford, Westmeath and throughout the midlands leaving home in order to attend university in Dublin, Galway and beyond.

“I don’t want to take away in any way from the excellent service that Athlone IT provides to the midlands, indeed, a university would complement Athlone IT and other excellent educational resources that exist in the midlands. However the fact remains that in order to access a university education people from the midlands must move away from home. This puts families under significant financial pressure.

“I know of one family that is considering buying a car for their son so as he can travel to Dublin on a daily basis in order to avoid accommodation costs, however this is not a sustainable situation for many students and their families. The costs of supporting a young person through university are considerable enough without adding travel and accommodation to the list.

“I am aware that we are still recovering from the economic disaster that occurred under the previous government and that Government spending is still very constrained, however I believe we need to put a university for the midlands on the agenda. It would provide considerable benefit to people in the midlands.”