Mr. Paul Ellingstad:

I am an example of somebody who has been remote working for more than 15 years. I have fortuitously been in the IT sector. I have been working over 25 years since I started my career. I have been living in Ireland and working for multinational companies in global jobs. It started in Gateway 2000 in Europe and east Africa as well as global roles when I lived in Dún Laoghaire. I moved to Clare in 2007. I was able to do that because of the trusting relationship not only with my employer but also with my manager. I find that while more people are building those relationships, that trust it is still not at a point where the culture and trust within organisations enable the potential we have today to be pervasive.

In terms of what the Government can do to support it, there is still a perception that remote working is about converting a spare bedroom into a home office and hoping there is good broadband. It is about co-working spaces and how the Government and local organisations can support them. If people are coming together in a co-working space, they have all the social interaction and the vibrancy of the community yet they are connected with their customers, employers or employees anywhere in the world. It is about encouraging those spaces and, as Ms Keogh noted, going beyond the mindset that this is for small start-ups and trying to create new businesses. That is definitely part of it, but there are so many people around the country and the world who have the capability to work in remote spaces and make their communities vibrant if they are given that opportunity and the process and trust are built with their employers and with the community.