Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Scientific research has been a key plank of Ireland's economic and industrial policy and it has also been vital in enabling us to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. That is down to our scientists, many of whom were inspired to go into research through their engagement with Science Gallery Dublin. Science Gallery Dublin has gone international, with offshoots ranging from the United States to Australia. Next month, however, the original gallery here in Ireland is set to shut its doors for the last time, undermining our strategy as a country to position itself as a world leader in science and technology. Reading between the lines, it seems the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media are in dispute as to which will contribute to the operational shortfall. This short-sighted internal bickering must stop and the doors of the gallery must be kept open for Ireland's sake.

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