Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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We are trying to assist the ESRI in what it is doing. In the submissions we made to the Central Statistics Office, CSO, on having congruence with the data North and South, we encouraged it through the Joint Committee on Finance and the Committee on Budgetary Oversight to talk to its counterpart in the North and have a formal arrangement there that will provide more data to assist the ESRI and others in the work they are doing. I hope that will be helpful.

In terms of health and workforce planning, we have to plan now for five, ten, 15 or 20 years' time. That has to be done on an all-island basis and regardless of the Constitution. We have a situation where people are being trained in the North, and their qualifications are not recognised here and vice versa in terms of CORU and others.

I want to ask about the west and northwest being in transition and attracting European funding. Perhaps it will be addressed when answering other questions. If there is a transitional situation where there is constitutional change, and if the island will be part of the EU, would the ESRI see the North then being regarded as a region in transition? If so, what might that attract? Projects and investments under the European Regional Development Fund, ERDF, attract 60% funding. That needs to be taken into account as we look at where we might be economically.