asked the Minister for Education if he will take immediate steps to introduce third level degree courses which can be pursued at various centres throughout the country through the medium of television and under the aegis of either the National University of Ireland or Dublin University; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

There are no plans in my Department to introduce, through the medium of television, courses of the kind mentioned by the Deputy.

Is the Minister aware that many adults cannot afford to attend education centres and that the provision of television courses would be of great benefit to those interested in further education? Would the Minister initiate some policy in respect of these courses?

I agree with the Deputy that this is a desirable facility. At present, I cannot tell the Deputy that I will be able to make such a facility available. I agree with the Deputy that it is an excellent facility and fills many gaps. A study was done on the effects of the Open University in Great Britain and I have read accounts of education programmes on Italian television. I am convinced that these programmes are of great advantage to any community.

Would the Minister consider seeking permission from RTE to compile the British courses and to re-transmit them on RTE?

One of my predecessors decided that RTE would have to do their own funding of such programmes because the Department were funding from year to year and RTE would need a long-term programme for a proper educational effect.

Would the Minister not accept that there is greater urgency in relation to the million people living in Ireland who have not even had second level education?

I do not know where the Deputy got the statistic, but I am talking about Ireland, not any other country.