Staff at the Houses of the Oireachtas received €85,000 towards their third-level fees in the first eight months of 2010. Thirty-three members of staff applied to be reimbursed for costs incurred in studying, under a scheme operated by the Department of Finance for all civil-service departments.

A spokesman for the Oireachtas said the scheme was an investment in its employees. "Expenditure on post-entry education is an investment to enhance the public service to meet the challenges facing it. The scheme aims to assist the development of new management and operational skills, foster new ways of working and to im­prove work performance."

According to information obtained by the Sunday Tribune, courses taken by staff this year included public administration, public procurement, legal studies, European languages and human resources. On average, the cost of a part-time course is €6,000.

Staff have also been told they must do the courses primarily in their own time and not let it take up working hours.

"All courses must lead to a second- or third-level educational, professional or vocational qualification directly relevant to the requirements of the office or a qualification in a language other than English. They must also be provided by a recognised educational institute or professional body and be pursued primarily in employees' own time," said the spokesman.

Staff of all seven universities in Ireland are also entitled to have the cost of a course refunded under the scheme. Each year, a 'mini fair' is held in the Dáil inviting colleges to create stands to showcase their courses to members of staff.

President of the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) Gary Redmond said: "We would welcome any initiative that encourages this kind of development – we should be upskilling and aspiring towards lifelong learning."

The Houses of the Oireachtas is, meanwhile, attempting to cut back on operational costs, and has cut its budget by €33m.

"The budget allocation for the three-year period to end 2012 covered in the plan is €360m. This expenditure consists of salaries, wages and expenses of Houses of Oireachtas employees, salaries and expenses of TDs and senators and other standard operational costs associated with running the Houses of Oireachtas," said the spokesman.