Mr. Niall Egan:

On the original sunset clause, it is tied to the original date the two Ministers first signed the regulations, which from memory was March 2022. We extended it and added a one-year sunset clause in March 2023 and then last March the Ministers extended it by two years. I take the point that it is in the academic year. It is just the nature of the extension. I think the Deputy is right that we need to give certainty to people. We would not want to be telling people in March 2025 that it is not being extended. The Ministers would have to make a decision in a timely manner and at that time we could look at taking the academic year into account.

In terms of take-up, it is relatively low but it is a new initiative going back to March 2022. These things do take time. As well as that, we know a lot of universities have put a strong focus on promotion. We have seen that. It does come in waves as well. It is something we would expect to pick up, especially for the very reasons the Deputy has highlighted in respect of the TU. That is replicated across many universities. I am not aware of any particular barriers. As we said in the opening statement, a key thing is trying to align ourselves with a consistent approach with the Department of Health and the Revenue Commissioners. That is the purpose of the regulation. If there are barriers, they will obviously be of interest. Any information about them would be much appreciated.