Fidelma Healy Eames (Fine Gael)

Yesterday a number of us referred to the ESRI report and expressed concern about its key finding that some people were better off on the dole than at work. Within a number of hours we saw the report being pulled. What concerns me is that the director of the institute has dissociated it from the findings made in the report and said it had not been peer reviewed and validated. We need to ask the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Joan Burton, and, in particular, the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí, to check this out. How often has this happened, or has it happened before? Does it involve an internal dispute between a researcher and the institute because many issues seem to be at odds? We must remember that the ESRI has a very good reputation in and is of enormous value to the country. We need to know that papers which have not been validated do not lead to findings which could scare people and change behaviour, in particular in the world of work. At the very least, the House should receive a statement on what has gone on at this highly credible institute which should not fall into disrepute as a result of what perhaps is an internal issue. We also need an assurance that this has not happened before and that something did not come to light because it might not have been the subject of a controversial report.