Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance)
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This question concerns PhD researchers from non-EEA countries. There is a national review of State supports for PhD researchers generally taking place and last week hundreds of these researchers were outside Leinster House to highlight the issues they face with their work.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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This is a tricky question for me because usually when I am asked if I have engaged with another Department I can say I will, but I am currently the Minister for Justice as well so it is a question asking whether have I engaged with myself, which I do regularly.

Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance)
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It is a tricky one for me as well.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputies Gino Kenny and Boyd Barrett for the question. It is an important issue. The quality of our researchers is fundamental to the quality of our research system and its collaboration with partners in industry and policy-makers in both Ireland and abroad.

Under pillar 4 of our national research and innovation strategy, Impact 2030, we have committed to ensuring that researchers have the right skills development and career opportunities to allow them make their maximum contribution, whether in academia, industry, the public sector or elsewhere. As part of this commitment, I announced a national review of State supports for PhD researchers. I was pleased to appoint two exceptional co-chairs, Dr. Andrea Johnson and David Cagney, to oversee the review. I met the co-chairs at the end of February and they provided an update on the progress of the review.

This independent review is currently very much underway. The two co-chairs are approaching completion of a very comprehensive round of stakeholder consultations and written submissions. The Dáil felt strongly about the importance of the co-chairs meeting directly with the representative groups, research groups, student groups and other stakeholders. I am pleased to tell the Deputy the stakeholder engagement included a meeting between the co-chairs and officials from both the Department of Justice and the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science on 20 March.

The review is considering a range of critical issues, including those affecting non-EEA PhD researchers, as well as stipend levels and the consistency of supports across the system. Once the co-chairs complete their report, it will be considered by all relevant Government Departments, including the Department of Justice, in advance of a Government decision. The fundamental piece here, which I hear when I go around the country and engage with researchers, is we want to attract people here to do their research. That often involves a spouse coming as well, it may involve a family and it involves our visa system understanding how that happens. What the review group is trying to do in working with the Department of Justice is come up with solid recommendations in that space.

Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance)
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As I said, hundreds of PhD researchers were outside Leinster House last week to highlight the issue of their pay and conditions. There are over 10,500 such researchers and their hourly rate is below the minimum wage at present. It is difficult to survive on that. I think the stipend is €19,000 at the moment and researchers are calling for more than that due to the cost-of-living crisis and the cost of living in the State generally. PhD researchers are excluded from social welfare benefits because they are paid so little they do not earn PRSI contributions. The review is therefore important, and I hope it will be favourable for PhD students, wherever they come from. As the Minister said it is about keeping their talent in the country and the importance of their giving the benefit of their education and talent to the country.

Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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Deputy Conway-Walsh wishes to contribute on this question.

Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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I am glad the focus is on PhD researchers at the moment and that there has been a realisation they are critical not only to our productivity, but to our social and economic growth now and into the future. There were reports last night that Jeffrey Sardina, a member of the national committee of the Postgraduate Workers Organisation, PWO, received documents from Revenue that indicated PhD researchers in receipt of the stipend may be required to pay taxes. Is the Minister aware of any evaluation by Revenue that suggests this? This is concerning in two ways. The first is the idea someone earning far below the minimum wage and denied all standard workers' rights would be asked to pay tax. PhD researchers are barely able to get by and they simply cannot afford to see a reduction in what they take home, which is already minute. The second issue is whether Revenue has looked at the work of the PhD researcher and concluded it is not a scholarship, but in fact work. According to Revenue, the object of the scholarship must be the promotion of the education of the holder, rather the promotion of research through the holder. Can the Minister shed any light on that?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I have not been made aware of the issue Deputy Conway-Walsh raised, but I will certainly become aware of it and revert to the Deputy on it. To be clear, the overall policy direction I want to go in is financially to support better our PhD research. The Deputy and I share that view.

On what Deputy Kenny said, there are about 11,000 PhD and research masters students in Ireland and about 2,700 of them are non-EU students. The issue in discussing this, which shows the need for the review, is there is such a range of stipend conditions for PhD researchers already. Some are funded through Science Foundation Ireland and the Irish Research Council and they receive a stipend of around €19,000. Around 2,000 researchers are funded by higher education institutions themselves, and I believe the stipends there range from €8,000 to €18,500. There are around 4,000 PhD researchers categorised as self-funding. This is understood to include persons funded by their employers. Then there are about 1,000 researchers funded by other sources, including Teagasc, the Health Research Board and European programmes. Thus, there is a whole variety and a landscape here. I am going to run out of time, but the terms of reference of the review are really to look at current financial supports, the consistency, the equity of arrangements, the visa situation, the research-employer-student status and graduate outcomes. The group is to report to me on all that in the coming weeks.

Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I thank the Minister. I think we all agree the composition of PhD researchers as a group is quite disparate and that it is important they are kept in this country. They are educators, ultimately, and should not have to struggle with their everyday needs. I hope the review leads to an increase in the stipend. When will the review be published? The researchers are eager to hear what will come of it. We hope it will benefit all PhD researchers in the country.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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A large body of work has been done by the co-chairs, for which I thank them. They have had meetings with more than 30 stakeholder organisations, including an all-day in-person workshop on 8 March. They have had a public consultation, through which they received approximately 750 written submissions, which indicates the energy behind the approach to change.

I expect to receive the report in the coming weeks - I hope to receive it in April - and will consider and publish it, but I will bring it to the Government first. I commissioned this review so as to have an evidence base and recommendations in advance of the Estimates process and the budget in October. After receiving it, bringing it to the Cabinet in due course and publishing it, I will try to begin to make progress on the Estimates.