Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Government is committed to joining CERN but there are challenges relating to costs. Under Innovation 2020 we have joined three out of the four research organisations to which I referred, namely, the European Southern Observatory, ELIXIR and LOFAR. We are committed to joining CERN but the funding was not there in this year's budget, though we tried very hard to secure it. Even if we get a supplementary budget at the end of this year, a lengthy process is involved in joining CERN.

Maybe we could consider associate membership for a start. The Deputy has outlined the great benefits of joining CERN, particularly in driving research excellence in education and in providing training opportunities. Membership also enables companies based in Ireland to compete for contracts.

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