Big Read: University of Limerick mired in housing scandal after concerns over €11.4m deal were ignored

UL bought 20 homes for student accommodation – but the properties are worth only half what it paid

The Higher Education Authority (HEA) wants answers from UL over the homes

Wayne O'Connor

At the end of an unprecedented meeting last Thursday, a former University of Limerick (UL) governing authority member spoke of a culture underlying the college’s current crisis.

Dr Fergal O’Brien said that when he asked questions, he was seen a troublemaker. “One of the expressions that has entered the lexicon here is, ‘I take your silence as agreement’. My understanding, as an Irish person, is when I am being silent I am very much not agreeing with you,” Dr O’Brien told a room of hundreds of colleagues and students.