Professor Diarmuid Hegarty:

If I may, I would like to offer a commercial focus on the point raised by the Senator. We have seen examples during the Covid period of research being developed in the universities and being applied. Individual professors are doing good work in that regard. I feel, however, that there are not sufficient connections between the employment and investment incentive, EII, scheme and research within the universities. There is potential there in terms of funding for applied research if the universities were to develop the skills needed to cultivate Asian investors, for example, and perhaps work more with the Department on developing the EII scheme. I serve on Dublin Chamber and we made submissions to Government last February on the scheme. It needs to be broadened significantly and it needs to reward people for risk-taking. Research can involve total risk and total loss or it can involve substantial gain. In the case of applied research, there is an opportunity there. If we had more of those types of commercial skills within the universities, it might enhance the potential return universities and individual researchers can get from the research. It is just a thought.