Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will ask Dr. Love to comment first and then I will ask Mr. Mannion to give the Department's view on the issue of intellectual property rights. One of the issues to be considered is the fact that physical resources, equipment and staff costs are all paid for by the taxpayer in these institutions. However, when the taxpayer gets 1% of the spin-out company, we have no idea whether that even covers the costs incurred by the taxpayer. What accounting mechanisms are in place to keep track of the costs being incurred by the taxpayer in relation to this intellectual property which is ultimately privatised, with the State only getting 1% or 2%? We need to have a system in place to track that.