The Higher Education Minister expects progress to be made by the end of the year on a new Technological University for the South East.
Simon Harris has announced independent expert Tom Boland, a former CEO of the Higher Education Authority, has been appointed to accelerate the plans.
He says the delivery of a Technological University for the south-east is a priority for the government.
It'll be jointly run by Waterford IT and Carlow IT and significant progress is expected to be made on delivering it by the end of the year.
He says it's absolutely vital we have one for the south-east as it's the only region in the country that has no university.
Minister Simon Harris says it will be a welcome boost for the south-east.
"We also have significant funding. We have a transformation fund which can be drawn down on by technological universities. so I see this as a huge opportunity for the south east not just to get a university, which is key to making sure we can create employment and keep people in the region but also an opportunity to draw down capital funding to further enhance the infrastructure that's already there in the south-east - in Waterford and in Carlow."
