People Before Profit has called for the planned closure of Carlow College to be paused until full information is provided about the process that led to the college's proposed closure. Political representatives have highlighted the serious unanswered questions that remain despite growing political concern across the Oireachtas.
The party said it welcomed the growing cross-party support for staff and students. It stressed that the decision to close one of Ireland's oldest higher education institutions was not a fait accompli, but a deliberate political decision and must be subjected to proper public scrutiny.
Speaking during the recent Oireachtas Committee hearing on the future of Carlow College, People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett condemned the treatment of staff and students. He said:
"Why were the staff treated so badly that they are told about closure at the last minute, when they had previously been led to believe that they were going to be integrated into SETU, and the ethos of the college and their jobs would be retained?"
He described the handling of the closure as "absolutely disgraceful", criticising the lack of consultation and questioning how staff and students were left in the dark after repeated assurances that integration into SETU was the intended outcome.
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said the hearing had exposed significant contradictions between the positions advanced by Carlow College, South East Technological University (SETU) and the Department, making it impossible to accept that closure is now inevitable.
Paul Murphy TD said:
"The growing support for Carlow College staff from across the political spectrum reflects the fact that too many fundamental questions remain unanswered. This is not simply an administrative process that everyone must now accept; it was a political decision and it deserves political scrutiny.
"The evidence heard by the Oireachtas committee highlighted clear contradictions in how the closure has been explained. Before one of the country's oldest educational institutions is allowed to disappear, the Government must pause this process and provide a full account of how these decisions were reached and whether viable alternatives were properly explored."
Carlow County Council Cllr Adrienne Wallace said it was unacceptable that, despite months of campaigning and national political attention, staff were still living with uncertainty over their futures.
Cllr Wallace said:
"It is encouraging to see support for Carlow College coming from across the political spectrum, but expressions of concern are not enough. The people paying the price for this decision are the staff, who still do not have certainty around redundancy arrangements, fair pay or their future employment.
"That is a ludicrous position to be in after everything that has happened. Staff have campaigned with dignity, secured national media attention and brought this issue before the Oireachtas, yet they are still waiting for the basic security and fairness they deserve. The least the Government can do is pause the closure process until the full facts are available and those workers receive the treatment they are owed.
"I have submitted two motions to the 30th July meeting of Carlow Municipal District (MD) calling for the SETU to provide the report carried out by Mazars consultancy firm, concerning the proposed merger between both institutions, to Carlow Councillors and Carlow College staff representatives, and for the closure of Carlow College to be paused and for the MD to write to Minister James Lawless to request that possible alternatives to save the college and the 87 jobs be explored.”
People Before Profit reiterated its support for staff and students and called on the Minister for Further and Higher Education to suspend the planned closure until the Mazars report relating to the decision-making process is released and examined, and until the outstanding issues affecting staff are resolved.