Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

Is the emphasis in the smart economy not on developing and creating jobs? If so, there must be a commercial return. I would not dismiss this outlook as being crass. Consider the amount of funding invested in science and technology. The McCarthy report outlined that, of the more than 90 schemes, some 60 involve funding towards PhDs. Has the Minister of State any plans to streamline this type of funding?

In recent months, people were shocked that the FÁS Discover Science and Engineering programme needed to be axed, but funding was spent on similar schemes across other boards. Is there a commitment to ensure that funding on science and technology is not spread across various agencies and, instead, is more focused? There is evidence that the current approach displaces private sector investment.

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