free fees for 3rd level?
While I think that it's most important for education to be provided from pre-school upwards, I also think that 3rd level education is getting to be more of a requirement for almost any job - whether it's from the ex-Techs or from Uni. In fact arguably the Institute of Technology qualification is more fitted to furthering careers for most people.
When I went to university, (1980) I had worked for 4 years to save the money and then had to work summers to get together the next years fees. And I wasn't the only one in my year doing this - we weren't old enough to be 'mature' students, but were definately older than the school-leavers. I wonder if it wouldn't be possible to have some sort of system where the student pays a small fee, and then maintenance is paid for those under a limit/mature students no longer living with their parents/from a different area.
I know people who studied abroad who were either tied into some deal where they would then work for the sponsoring body or had to take out a loan, and this went wrong in some way - they had children, or a parent became ill, or the only work they could get was low paid. Or they needed a further qualification to specialise which would then almost guarantee a well paid job, but couldn't afford to study any longer.... Very dispiriting and very stressful.