Two amendments expanding the types of higher education colleges covered by the proposed George Mitchell scholarship fund were accepted by the Minister for Education and Science, Mr Martin, in the Dail yesterday.

Agreeing with the opposition spokesman on Education and Science, Mr Richard Bruton, that Senator Mitchell "is an excellent role model for students", Mr Brian O'Shea of Labour said he had, however, a number of difficulties with the Bill.

Two were "technical issues" in relation to wording, but he had further difficulties in that the Bill seemed to refer only to scholarships to universities.

The impact of the Bill would therefore be to rule out institutes of technology and other colleges. He instanced the Irish School of Ecumenics, which he said had a course in conflict resolution.

This course would be central to the sphere of activity "which George Mitchell involved himself in", but would be excluded under the terms of the Bill.

The Bill would also be regionally discriminatory in that the south-east region, the midlands, the north-east and the north-west were without universities.

Mr O'Shea was supported at the committee stage of the Bill by Mr Bruton, who said it was "an elitist sort of approach to what could be supported by the fund." The fund should be opened up to others, including those involved in community conflict resolution, especially given the nature of its inspiration.

In reply, the Minister said he was assured of the legal validity of the wording of the Bill by the Attorney General. In relation to the exclusion of non-university status colleges, the Minister said he would accept amendments in relation to the institutes of technology and the Irish School of Ecumenics.

The Minister added that there were other scholarship schemes between the State and the United States of America which covered work in conflict resolution.

He would, however, accept the two mentioned amendments without alteration.