Dr. Dermot Coates:

No, that is not a measure for which we must wait for six months. There is quite a lot of engagement at interdepartmental level, including our own Department, feeding into the work of the Department of higher education on how best we believe the funds could be expended. Ultimately, it entails a decision at the discretion of the Minister for further and higher education and the Minister for public expenditure; however, as the Deputy has articulated, we are of the view that since firms have paid into the fund, there is a need to see it activated and used as best we can rather than accumulating a surplus, such as exists.