Dr. Liam Lysaght:

I thank Deputy O'Sullivan. The data centre is trying to build the evidence base on biodiversity and how it is changing. It is essential for us to track biodiversity if we want to measure how we are doing with regard to policy implementation. One of the difficulties with many of the agri-environment schemes in recent times is that they have not been underpinned by ecological monitoring which would allow their effectiveness to be assessed. The Deputy asked about the resources the centre requires. There is a need to do more monitoring of the countryside and to extend the breadth of monitoring to different types of biodiversity. The resources needed for that are staff and an infrastructure on which we can build.