SDLP Foyle MLA Sinead McLaughlin
The SDLP motion also calls for increased collaboration with the Irish government to increase the volume of cross-border undergraduate entrants and on the Minister to report to the Assembly on agreed actions not later than December 2024.
Speaking after the motion was supported in the Assembly, the Foyle MLA said: “It’s natural for some young people to leave home in search of opportunities and new horizons, but the very high levels of our young people leaving these shores each and every year is a major challenge to our society and economy.
“Research has found that it is a handbrake on the levels of productivity here in Northern Ireland and is fuelled by the failure of government to properly integrate our society and reform our politics so we can reassure young people that they have a future here at home.
“Alongside sectarian division and ineffective politics, many young people are also forced to leave because of the unfair cap on student numbers.
“Almost six months into this returned mandate, we still have no sign of any progress from the Executive on lifting that cap or reforming higher education funding.
“Even students who may wish to stay on this island and help to build the all-island economy are also prevented from doing so by a series of institutional and systemic barriers, not least our poor careers guidance system and entry requirements that remain disjointed and unaligned between North and South.
“The brain drain is also particularly relevant in a place like Derry.
“The fact that an entire university’s worth of students from Northern Ireland is studying in Britain while the government here has not invested in the university of size that has been promised in my city is a source of deep frustration.
“The SDLP believes that everyone should have the choice to build their lives where they want, and no one should be forced away from these shores.
“I am pleased that the Assembly backed our calls for a dedicated Strategy to be agreed between the Department for the Economy and the Department of Education, including on cross-border mobility.
“As our result of our motion, the Minister for the Economy will be required to come before the Assembly at the end of this calendar year to report on progress and I look forward to holding him accountable on this crucial issue,” added the Foyle MLA.
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