Ms Tracy Keogh:

I will address each of the points raised insofar as I can. A database of hubs has been made available by TechIreland, which is led by Niamh Bushnell. Its database, available at www.techireland.org/hubs, lists all of the more than 200 hubs across Ireland.

I made notes regarding broadband but I am not sure if I want to address it. I am 29 years old. I decided to move back to the regions from Dublin and other areas. I want to live in a place that does more than ask for broadband to be provided. A bigger vision is needed. Broadband is only an enabler. We know from places such as Ballinasloe - we have a fantastic chapter in Ballinasloe - where broadband has been provided that it does not solve the world's problems. We need to take a holistic approach.

Deputy Ó Cuív spoke about rural areas and people in their 30s. A group in Canada that studies rural rejuvenation identified that people move back to rural areas in their 30s. If one wants to target that demographic, one needs to speak to them about schools and target the children more than the parents. Remote work levels the playing field. A recruitment firm which utilises remote working stated that talent and intelligence are equally distributed but opportunity is not. That gap is closing. When jobs are not location dependent, rural communities can compete on a level playing field with urban areas. People can make the choice to live where they wish to live rather than because of the area's proximity to jobs. A previous meeting of the committee dealt with the opportunities offered by decentralisation. As I previously referenced, remote work is essentially the result of private industries choosing to decentralise.

We work with broadband officers on an individual basis. They do a tremendous job and look at everything that broadband will enable rather than just as a utility. For example, Ciaran in Donegal played a significant role in getting our chapters up and running. That subsequently led to people on Arranmore Island being trained in the skill of remote work. My experience on the ground has been very positive.

It is great to hear that IDA Ireland is active in this area. It probably played a major role in developing remote working here. While I lived in Galway, it was announced that Shopify was to provide a certain number of remote jobs. Overnight, people such as Aodhán Moran began walking into our core working space. I had never seen him before. There are many catalysts to a company choosing to go remote. I saw the power of what could happen. IDA Ireland played a significant role in building and catalysing this momentum.

Remote working jobs are currently available. That is one of the first things we point out to companies. We encourage Irish companies who operate remote working on an ad hocbasis to start developing policies, procedures and the culture and technology that is needed to ensure it is sustainable. If they keep going on an ad hocbasis, those jobs would probably be the first to go if we dropped from full employment.While we are at full employment and there is a talent war, we must make sure that we are encouraging companies to urgently implement the tools and policies required to ensure sustainable growth into the regions.