James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree, as the committee did, that associate membership would be the way forward. In recent discussions, the price tag has been raised and €30 million does seem very high. We could, however, be associate members for €1.3 million. A total of €500 million is being made available for the emerging technologies fund so we could take €1 million from that and leave €499 million for emerging technologies. There is nothing that more defines emerging technologies than what goes on at CERN. The worldwide web came out of CERN, accidentally, with Tim Berners-Lee, and the touchscreens we have on our phones came from CERN. Medical imaging came out of CERN.

Associate membership would make a lot of sense. It would allow us to try before we buy and scale up our commitment gradually.

I ask that the Minister explore whether there is an opportunity in the supplementary budget, given the strong cross-party consensus that emerged in the committee yesterday, the very strong case which was made, and the circumstances in which Irish scientists find themselves. They are not members but they have a halfway house and are in on a wing and a prayer, on borrowed time, and they are building up friendships to try to get access to facilities. It is embarrassing for those in that position. It should be dealt with in the supplementary budget or at least a commitment should be given that it will be advanced in next year's budget. We can do it for as little as €1.3 million.

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