Ms Marie Armstrong:

Some indigenous companies, particularly in medtech, have been formed by people who worked in FDI companies, particularly in the Galway area. It has been a hotbed for new Irish companies. One of Ireland's largest companies, CRH, has a presence in many countries around the world. The reason is that a brick cannot be exported in an efficient manner from Ireland to the US. Looking at the types of products we have that are easily transportable by air or by ship is something we need to think about and look at the shift in what we are doing.

Every ten years China sets out a new programme outlining what it will do in the future. It has been mainly targeted on cities. It will pick a city to be focused on medtech, food or agriculture. It will pick those in a very specific manner. Having read the paper yesterday I think there is some suggestion of doing that in Ireland. It would be the correct approach to establish centres of excellence. That has happened naturally through FDI, whether that is down in Cork with chemical companies or in Galway. That has happened because that is where the companies want to be, rather than a strategy. It is a good idea to build on that and try to keep jobs not just in Dublin but outside Dublin - in the west and midlands.