§ Mr. WatsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many students at universities in Northern Ireland received the mature student's allowance in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and what percentage of all mature students in each year these figures represent; what was the administrative cost of operating the mature students' allowance in Northern Ireland for each of the last five years for which information is available.
§ Mr. AncramThe number of Northern Ireland students receiving the older students' allowance, payment of which is the responsibility of the education and library boards, is available only for the following three years:
Year Number 1992–93 375 1993–94 439 1994–95 530 Information about the percentage of all mature students that these figures represent and administrative operational costs is not readily available.
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