Dr. Joseph Ryan:

I thank the Senator for her question. She mentioned the prologue about international reputation. We are working on the international strategy at the moment. The Department is working on that and we are feeding into it. That question links into the broader policy question of demand for places in higher education. Mr. Miley and I spoke about this privately earlier.

The Senator asked me directly where we come from. I noticed her Twitter feed earlier this morning extolling the praise of central Ballinasloe which Mr. Miley will be delighted to see. I am very impressed with her being here with us in person. When we were setting up these technological universities, including the Atlantic Technological University, ATU, part of that was about telling the story. It was very much about engaging with the region to convince the region to bring people with it. This was not just about the institutions. The Senator knows this. She has supported it, as did Deputy Conway-Walsh. It was about the ambition of our region to come together. These are catalysts for the sustainable growth of that region.

I take Mr. Miley's final point and what is implicit in the Senator's question. There is something about how we together tell the story. It goes back to my point about prioritisation and there may be some work to be done on that.