SDLP claim Brexit impacting education

Mr O’Toole issued a statement after the Assembly’s Economy Committee heard that measures including cutting university places, increasing tuition fees by nearly 60% and abolishing the Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA) were being considered to make up a £65m shortfall - which he claimed was linked to the department losing £100m in EU funding.

Mr O’Toole said young people should not face barriers in accessing education as “a direct result of failures from the DUP and other Brexiteers”.

“The proposals brought forward at the Economy Committee last week have caused serious alarm amongst our young people and the higher education sector,” he said.

“The DUP have made a mess of this department for the last 15 years and now it looks as though their fanatical pursuit of the hardest Brexit possible will result in a huge funding shortfall and their plan is to pass the cost for this onto our young people.