Mr. Paul Healy:

In respect of the Deputy's question about helping business to diversify and become sustainable, it speaks to a broader question around our ability as a country to compete on the basis of talent, which is something we have been very successful at doing. Having a high-skilled and agile workforce is a core part of our proposition in this country and how we win investment. However, that is, of course, under immense strain all the time from factors such as technology in particular and how it is reshaping the workforce and skills.

In many ways, there is a twofold challenge that Skillnet Ireland is working on. The first is how to maintain a highly skilled workforce in the context of the changes occurring with the introduction of new technologies and so on. Our job really starts when people come out of the public education system, further and higher education and into work. That is when they are in our hands. We can boost their skills while they are in employment.

The second challenge that we are committed to is working with small firms, in particular. We will support somewhere in the order of 16,000 to 17,000 SMEs this year. It is important we help them because there are productivity challenges within our small firms of which the Deputy will be aware. For workers within small firms, it is important their skills are not left behind due to productivity or innovation issues within the firm in which they are working. It is a core part of the work we do in supporting hundreds of thousands of workers in small firms to remain competitive and have opportunities within their careers.

Therefore, the dual challenge we see is delivering a system that continues to produce high skills in respect of those in employment but which can also meet the skill challenges of those working in smaller firms.