Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

I ask this question in light of the report of the expert group on future skills needs to which the Minister referred and the recent announcement by the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance, Deputy Cowen, in Belfast of what was described as a win-win situation. Recent media reports point to an estimated 8,000 to 9,000 vacancies in the financial services sector. This is alarming. If the international financial services sector in Ireland is to remain vibrant, we cannot afford such a shortage of skilled personnel. That will only contribute to the erosion of our competitiveness and productivity.

The Minister acknowledges that action must be taken to address the skill shortages in this sector. We have spoken before about the skill shortage in the science and technology area. What are the Minister's plans in this area? In both cases, part of the solution lies in encouraging students to take up maths, science and business subjects. The expert group also issued recommendations in regard to the research agenda, encouraging communication between academics and the industry. A similar approach is required in the area of science and technology. We do not have time to delay given the level of shortages.

See this speech in context