Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We are not putting all our eggs in one basket; €150 million is going into this out of the approximately €725 million that is spent on research. The HEA funds much more than we do and its funds provide the blue-sky freedom to individual researchers to study their own things and do whatever collaborations they wish - indeed those people can collaborate with our centres and data. They are all located in universities and there is a web of them around the country. An academic can plug into our insight and we have developed in a such way that there are hubs and spokes, so there can be flexible interaction with these centres.

As the Deputy is aware, Science Foundation Ireland is investing in head-hunting stars who can come to Irish colleges and become a nucleus around which new thinking can occur. We are funding that from our Department, bringing in those stars who can build excellence around them. There is a lot that is exciting happening in this area but it is based on selection. The best projects win. It is not just saying that everyone gets €X and they all go off and we hope that something comes back. We stoutly defend the approach and evolve it all the time.

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