asked the Minister for Education if he will ensure that the new regional technical colleges to be established will confer degrees on their graduates.

The appropriate qualifications in respect of level of courses in regional technical colleges are awarded by the National Council for Educational Awards. Regional technical colleges to be established in the future will be administered on the same basis and provide similar courses, with due regard to variations related to regional needs, as existing colleges.

The purport of the question is that the standard of the award for the regional technical colleges should be those of degrees to put them on a par with the universities. Would the Minister favour that view and ensure that that will be done rather than awarding a lesser qualification?

There is no restriction as to the level of qualification which a regional technical college may be able to provide for its students. But the question of whether a degree should be awarded is a matter between the regional technical college concerned and the NCEA who have discussions with the college and agree on the various levels of curriculum and so forth.

It is agreed that it would be appropriate that, where a regional technical college would conduct a full-time three-or four-year course the status of a degree would be awarded to graduates rather than something less such as a diploma or something of that sort?

I do not want to give a non-qualified or blanket agreement to arrangements of that kind because the other consideration which has to be taken into account is whether or not it would be appropriate to extend in any one instance the number of institutions offering a degree level course in a specific subject. For example, in a relatively specialised area in which there might be a comparatively small number of students it would be wasteful of very expensive educational resources to allow a large number of institutions to offer these courses. Decisions as to the number and nature of degree level courses offered by bodies such as regional technical colleges should be decided on in the context not only of their own circumstances but of their relationship to third level institutions.

Does the Minister agree——

I have allowed many supplementaries on this.

——that, if it becomes the pattern that regional technical colleges award a qualification of a lesser status than degree, that would downgrade their status and make them second class third level institutions not comparable with other third level institutions? Would the Minister desire to see such a situation?

I can only answer by referring to the experience of the existing regional technical colleges. They were first put forward in 1967 and since they opened their doors over a decade ago they have proved their value and have been accepted as institutions of third level education which have no difficulty in attracting students. They have had no difficulty in having their worth and value recognised both in the educational community and the community at large.