Deirdre Clune (Fine Gael)

I am glad to have the opportunity to contribute to the debate. I welcome the Minister.

We are focusing on innovation which, as we all know, can be a very wide agenda, something mentioned by the Minister and Senator White. Innovation is not confined to the science lab, rather it concerns the economy, community and the public sector in particular in terms of how it can change and adapt to the changing world and ways of doing business.

The Minister, Deputy Howlin, is doing a lot of work in that area. Last year or the year before, the innovation task force produced a report. Its recommendations covered every Department, including the Department of Education and Skills and the then Department of Justice and Law Reform, in terms of bankruptcy and insolvency. The idea was to encourage an entrepreneurial spirit across the economy. We need to encourage that kind of thinking, particularly in the public sector.

As the Minister mentioned, we also need to address competitiveness and how companies fare which export abroad. The cost of doing business in this country is higher than others. It does not matter whether a company is exporting financial services or medical devices, it is competing abroad in international markets. Such companies carry additional weight associated with the cost of doing business in this country.

Last week the National Competitiveness Council produced its annual report, of which the Minister will be aware. It has been in operation since 1997 and examined the cost of doing business. While Ireland has improved in a lot of areas, the council pointed out that others are not sustainable. It referred to access to credit, which the Minister mentioned, taxation policy, education, energy and our telecommunications infrastructure. We need to improve in those areas if we are to ensure that indigenous and international companies succeed, continue to survive in the marketplace and create more jobs.

In terms of innovation, it is important to encourage start-up companies. The Minister has said on numerous occasions that he is listening to and has engaged in dialogue with these types of companies to determine their needs, concerns and what can be done to ensure they develop. Innovation is also about protecting existing jobs and ensuring skills are available and employees can be upskilled necessary. Others probably will refer to the situation regarding TalkTalk in Waterford. It puts a sharp focus on the skills that are needed, such as languages and information technology.

We recently received a submission from the Irish Internet Association outlining the lack of suitably qualified people for the ICT sector and gaming industry. The Minister mentioned the importance of the gaming industry and we have a real opportunity to perform. In Ireland, 75% of ICT employers have job vacancies and many are finding our young talent has gone abroad and is not available to them.

I do not want to have another debate on mathematics, but young people have not been attracted to technology and mathematically based studies. We are now finding there is a gap in terms of people who could be employed in these industries. Many issues are being progressed. The Minister, Deputy Quinn, is addressing the skills issue and is serious about ensuring we improve on the take-up of mathematics in schools and the courses young people take at third level.

The digital economy is also important. Real support has been given to small industries. The Digital Hub presented a submission to us recently on the need to encourage small businesses, in particular, to go online and become accessible. The figures submitted are striking. Last year 70% of the €3 billion spent by Irish consumers went to non-Irish businesses because people bought online, especially from the UK. There is a real need to ensure all small businesses have access to the Internet to advertise their wares, services and products.

The Minister mentioned transferring research and development into money. How will we do that? I would like to focus on the technology transfer centres in universities and third level institutions. I hope there is a future for them but I wonder what form they will take. They can play a very important role in transferring knowledge into money-making industries.