Mr. Jim Miley:

On the issue of accountability to the Dáil, the comparison the Deputy outlined is interesting. Nevertheless, we are very much involved in research and innovation and are drivers of economic growth through fostering that. I see us very much in the developmental space as much as in that of education. Enterprise Ireland, for example, has a strong fostering role for SMEs and indigenous industry, as well as a direct funding and grant-making role, while there is a similar dynamic at Bord Bia.

I would see the HEA in that space. It has that oversight and funding function but also has that role of advocacy and fostering the benefits of the sector. I will leave the question on the borrowing framework because I think that was directed more to Dr. Ryan and others.

I am glad the Deputy mentioned agility. We sometimes talk about autonomy as if it is an end in itself, but this is all about agility. During Covid, all our institutions have responded in a very agile way to the pressures of Covid, not just in translating to an online teaching environment but also through staff being seconded to the health services, research laboratories being transformed into testing centres, contact tracing and all that work. We have to link that to the individual agility of the institutions to make those decisions and move quickly to do that. That is what I think of when I refer to agility.