Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for working with the members of the committee, particularly me, over the past number of weeks and months. I also thank her officials. There has been a slight change to the guard in that regard and I know that Deirdre McDonnell was heavily involved in this Bill. This is a major achievement for the confidence and supply agreement and not only for the Government, because this legislation has been hanging around for the past number of years, leaving huge uncertainty in the IT sector around the country, and had not been able to pass in the Dáil. Working together with the Minister, who genuinely took on board suggestions that we made, making changes to the legislation, some of which we have just agreed in her amendments, but which really came from the committee debate to which we all contributed, it has been a hugely positive experience for us as legislators. This will set the tone for higher education in what will be the technological university sector. I know Deputy Browne will be very interested in what will happen in Waterford and Carlow in particular, and Deputy Collins similarly in Limerick. We are very interested all around the country, in Dublin and everywhere else that will get this designation-----

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