Ms Beth O'Reilly:

Yes. From a third level perspective, I do not know a lot of people who went into STEM-focused degree courses with the aim of qualifying as a teacher. It is mainly to work in the industry. That is something we are seeing across the board. More and more people are doing a degree as a stepping stone to getting a career and well-paid job. We are in danger of seeing that, more and more, well-paid jobs are outside of Ireland. We have an amazing higher education system and that is why so many international students come here for STEM courses. The problem is that once they have the qualification, there is a significant amount of money to be made off the island. We are seeing a large number of people who are extremely qualified emigrating as a result of the high cost of living here and the better opportunities elsewhere. It is disappointing.