FORMER EU commissioner Peter Sutherland has emerged as a candidate to chair the Government's forthcoming National Strategy on Higher Education.
Minister for Education Batt O'Keeffe is said to be "open-minded'' about Mr Sutherland's appointment.
But any move to appoint Mr Sutherland could be resisted by some in Fianna Fáil because of his former links with Fine Gael.
Mr Sutherland's appointment is favoured by several influential figures in higher education. But one well-placed source said it would be "wrong to portray Mr Sutherland as a front-runner, as he is one of several names in the frame".
The Cabinet is due to make the appointment and endorse the terms of reference for the strategy shortly.
The national strategy is likely to shape higher education policy for a generation.
In recent weeks, Mr Sutherland has praised Mr O'Keeffe for raising the issue of third-level fees for debate, saying Ireland had been "paralysed" in confronting the matter until recently.
Last night, a spokesman for the Minister said it would be "inappropriate to speculate on individual names" as consultations continue.
Mr O'Keeffe, he said, has "consulted with a wide number of interests and several names are under active consideration". Other names mentioned include Peter Cassells, former Ictu general secretary; Brigid McManus, the secretary general of the Department of Education and Science; and several senior British academics.
Among other issues, the new national strategy will consider the issue of third-level fees and the funding crisis in higher education.
In delivering a Higher Education Authority lecture recently, Mr Sutherland advocated a "Tallaght strategy" - a non-party political approach - in dealing with the fees question.
A decade ago, Mr Sutherland, a former attorney general, was widely tipped as a possible president of the European Commission. But the then Fianna Fáil-led government refused to consider his nomination.
Mr Sutherland was the pioneer of the successful Erasmus student exchange programme. In recent years he has contributed over €4 million to the development of a new law school at UCD. He has also provided funding for TCD.
The new strategy on higher education is designed to provide a vision for the future development of the sector.
Aside from funding, the strategy will consider a range of other issues, including how Irish colleges can become world leaders in research and development, and the relationship between universities and institutes of technology.
The strategy will be launched by the Government early in the new year. A final report should be ready within 18 months.
Peter Sutherland is chairman of BP. He is also chairman of Goldman Sachs International and chairman of the London School of Economics.
He is a former director general of the World Trade Organisation.
