Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I hope to launch the next tranche in June. The projects which have been funded to date have been very successful. For example, I was at the Tyndall research centre only two weeks ago where I saw that a hand-held MRI machine was in development. That is something for the future. I also saw a tiny camera. It was smaller even than the head of a pin. The project will allow cameras to enter the body to look at the heart. What is going on out there is amazing, including in the area of photonics. It is important to make the public aware of these projects. For example, a needle has been developed which administers an injection painlessly. I said it would be very useful for the dentist's office. There is a great deal of excitement around what is happening in technology in Ireland. Over €1 billion worth of applications for the disruptive technology came forward and we made a point of writing back to every applicant to explain where their applications may have failed and whether there was any other funding on which the applicants could draw. We want to capture and maintain that real interest in new technology.

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