Protest Update

UPDATE Reversal & Freeze to the 3% rent increase in Maynooth University On-Campus Accommodation

Maynooth Students’ Union (MSU) welcomes the decision by Maynooth University to reverse the planned increase in rents for the forthcoming year. This reversal and price freeze is the result of student pressure and we would like to thank every student and advocate who supported us in opposing this action.

This 3% increase was a decision reached without any involvement from MSU in representing the student voice. From the moment this was announced in early March we began our protests against this burden. We immediately made contact with the University President to voice our opposition and outline our protest plans.

We organised a protest outside the John Hume building on campus where we spoke with students about how this decision would impact negatively on the student experience. We collected over 2,000 signatures on the day and continued our protests by pitching tents on the green and continuing to protest.

While the COVID-19 crisis brought a premature end to our physical protests we continued to engage with University authorities in challenging this decision. We also engaged with media outlets and politicians to keep this issue on the agenda. Today we are delighted to be able to deliver good news to students in what is an uncertain time for us all.

This will not be the end of our action however, we will continue to engage with the University and the Government in ensuring students do not bear the brunt of the underfunding of the third-level sector. The cost of higher education is continuing to rise resulting in students being locked out of accessing third-level education. Governments and Universities need to work together to ease the financial burden on our students.

MSU President Katie Deegan has said: “It is crucial that third level education is recognised as a right and not a privilege for those who can afford it. We are delighted that the university has made this decision. I hope students reading this see how effective taking action alongside your Union can be! Ní neart go cur le cheile." 

We want to sincerely thank each and every Maynooth student for engaging on this issue- we look forward to continuing to represent your interests and working to make the Maynooth student experience the very best it can be.