Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The recovery has meant that there is greater interest in research and development in industry. There will be more money available through companies seeking to match State funding in this area. A lot of the money spent on research, particularly through SFI, attracts matching private funding. That is the key - to stretch taxpayers' money as much as possible. There is definitely an increased interest from industry in research and development. If we had more money, of course we would spend it. However, we are competing with every other Department for funding and all Departments are under pressure. That said, the increase in demand for research and development is good to see and will feature in our forthcoming budget negotiations.