Recently approved changes to the Higher Education Authority (HEA) Act will impose strict penalties for universities and colleges that misuse state grants, up to and including the withholding the grants or requesting the grants are refunded, according to a report in the Irish Times today.
Universities that fall foul of the new legislation may have funds withheld, or face “non-financial penalties” such as formal warnings. The government will also have the power to rescind a university or college’s status as a designated institution.
The HEA would be renamed the Higher Education Commission under the planned legislation.
The planned changes also include the introduction of performance or governance reviews of higher education institutions. Those carrying out such reviews will have full access to the institution’s internal documents.
If concerns arise about the running of the institution, an “observer” will be appointed to sit on a university’s governing bodies.
The changes come at a time when universities are becoming increasingly concerned about government interference.
Speaking to the Irish Times, one senior academic said: “At a time when less and less money is going into higher education, control of the sector is on the increase. It’s eroding our autonomy.”
In June, the Irish Times reported that the Irish Universities Association (IUA) lobbied for student accommodation to be exempt from rent caps, on the basis that it allowed individual universities greater self-governance.
Last year, Minister for Higher Education Mary Mitchell O’Connor announced plans to reform the governance of third-level institutions.
In a speech made at a conference run by the IUA today, the leader of Fianna Fáil, Micheál Martin, showed support for increased autonomy for universities and railed against government meddling in the allocation of research grants.
Martin also said he would consider the introduction of a loans scheme for higher education, and argued against the abolition of student fees.
