Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to be here to make a statement on Science Week and on the importance of scientific and technological advances in our economy and society.

My mother was born in 1932. She had osteoporosis as a child and spent several years in Cappagh Hospital from when she was seven until she was 11. The medicines that were available then were very poor compared to those for a child in a similar situation nowadays - it is day and night of a difference. That has occurred because of the research and development that we see, particularly in the medical field but in a whole range of areas. Across our economy, we see huge advances, particularly in the field of medical devices, pharma and so on.

We see more of our children engaging in this area. Mention was made of the number of students engaged in science and technology, some of them doing PhDs. Indeed, I have a nephew doing a PhD at the moment in UCD. He asked me to raise the issue of the payment that students receive, which is very poor in the circumstance of having to live in Dublin, particularly for people from outside the city. It is something the Government needs to take on because PhD students are talking about going on strike as a consequence. As we know, many PhD students in colleges and universities are the very ones who correct the papers and do a lot of the work, and the colleges would practically come to a standstill if that were to happen. It is an issue that needs to be examined. There is also the issue of the medical scientists and their claim for additional and better pay and conditions. The Devine report is on the Minister's desk and it needs to be brought forward.

Someone once asked me what is the opportunity for a person to be able to make money. The big thing that makes the difference is if they start with money. It is almost the same when it comes to education. Many people who grow up in households or communities that do not have the same engagement in education that others have are at a huge disadvantage. If they grow up in a community or household where the importance of education, research and all of those things is central to their lives and they see that going on around them, they have a much greater chance of engaging in that, even in an equal opportunities society. That is one of the issues we need to examine. There are whole swathes of people in poorer and low income households who do not engage in the same way that they would otherwise. While I appreciate that some speakers have talked about education and the opportunities that exist, many are blocked because of the circumstances they live in or the place they come from. To be able to lift that base is something the Government needs to emphasise.

The big thing that Science Week is looking at is the theme of humanity, with climate change and what we can do about it making the biggest impact. I often think that many of the issues we have today are the consequences of poor technological advancements in the past. That is why we have to be careful as we advance, given that, sometimes, some of the things we do can have a negative knock-on effect that we do not foresee. Most of the problems that we have will, hopefully, be overcome by technology, automation and the advances that can be made, but they can only be made if we have people who are engaged in those areas, not just doing the research but also doing the development that needs to be done to take it to the stage where many of these new ideas and advances can be brought to a commercial footing.

The big issue that we see in many areas, including the area that I am engaged in most, which is transport, is the electrification of the fleet, moving away from fossil fuels and trying to get people away from that by using electric buses, electric trains and electric cars and the battery technology around that. The fact the resources that go into those technologies are scarce and have an impact on our environment, and the huge difficulties around all of that, can only be overcome by more research and development and by ensuring we put all our effort into that.

It is interesting that, at the same time, we see continued resistance from the fossil fuel industry to go down that path. They want to continue to invest in something which, in reality, is the past. Science Week is an opportunity for us to focus on where the important things are, and the important thing is clearly around resolving the issues that we have today, many of which have been created as a consequence of poor technology in the past, but technology can provide huge opportunities for our future. The opportunity is to be able to get more of our young people involved in science and moving towards those technological advances that can, hopefully, create a bright future for everyone.

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