Deirdre Clune (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Aiken for his presentation. He referred to the four areas to which, in the context of the upcoming anniversary of the Downing Street statement, he would like consideration to be given. One of these is the commitment to further co-operation between the islands on innovation and knowledge in the context of joining industry, government and academia across all relevant sectors. Will Mr. Aiken elaborate further on this aspect? Is it already happening? We are engaged in a debate on how to pool knowledge and information in the third level sector and a great deal is taking place in that regard. This is particularly important in the context of the European Union's overall budget and also the budget of the Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Ms Máire Geoghegan-Quinn. I acknowledge the conversation which took place earlier on the United Kingdom's relationship with the European Union. If Mr. Aiken could provide further information on this matter, it would be welcome. I am sure there is a great deal happening in the third level sector in the United Kingdom and the context of industry supporting relevant research.