Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)

I welcome that. The remit has changed and so has the importance of particular areas. Resourcing needs to reflect that. I do not know of any other State agency providing such a fundamental service where there would be that extent of short-term or ephemeral contracts. I acknowledge Brittas Bay National school. They did an incredible job on the project. I congratulate the institute - those outreach programmes are so important. It is great to see young people have an opportunity to engage in marine science in a meaningful way and for it to be acknowledged at a national level. I also congratulate the institute on the bursary programme. That was how I got into the Marine Institute. It is still going strong. I believe it is now named after Anne Cullen, with whom I worked at the time. I would love to see an expansion of that and the outreach programmes because they are important.

While the witness mentioned all the points around the country where the Marine Institute has outreach centres, there is a notable absence on the east coast. At one stage it was out in Abbotstown. I would love to see some level of marine research or outreach post on the east coast. It is not just from a fisheries perspective, there is also education, in which the institute also plays an important role.