Deirdre Clune (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is not just for a narrow focus. Nine of the ten top software companies are established here, including Intel, Dell, Microsoft, IBM, Apple, HP, Facebook and Google. As it accounts for one third of our exports it is hugely important for the economy. Eight of the ten top pharmaceutical companies are located here. This is a very important sector for the economy and guarantees job security. For every one job created in the IBMs, the Dells or the Microsofts, there is another one to 1.4 jobs in the community, an issue that needs to be highlighted.

I really like the theme of Science Week. It appeals across the community and to parents and teachers to encourage careers in this area. This is the time of year we hear about parent-teacher meetings. I know from attending them there was always a queue for the language teachers. In the previous eight or nine years the focus was on business. The science, physics and applied maths teachers always had the shorter queues. I do not think that has changed much, despite the fact that those subjects are extremely important. Those students are no different from any other students and they have the potential to study those subjects to honours level, as required.

There are many openings in the area which can be satisfying because technology crosses all sectors of our lives. The companies whose operations are located here serve global markets, therefore languages are important. The fact is that technology contributes to a very meaningful industry and is available on the doorstep to many young people and those who are not so young who may have participated in the ICT action plan.

In summary, does the Minister of State plan to have a review of the ICT action plan and particularly the graduate conversion programmes which were introduced very quickly and were successful in many cases? Many individuals who had a profession that was no longer relevant could avail of those conversion programmes. The quality of the programmes is important. That message needs to be developed to ensure positive results. As the ICT action plan will be in place for two years in January 2014, a review of the conversion programmes, in particular, is extremely important.

As the Minister of State is responsible for research, an area that has come to my attention, on which he might wish to comment, is PhD students and the payment they receive. I was contacted by a female who is doing research and is being paid a stipend, not a salary. She is a mother of two young children who has lost the one-parent family payment. When I made inquiries of the Minister for Social Protection I found it was because the money that is paid to PhD students is not insurable income. Therefore, such students are not entitled to sick pay, maternity pay and other means-tested benefits.

My understanding is that in other European Union countries, not in the UK, the payment to postgraduates is considered insurable income. Many of these students are in their mid to late 20s and may have transferred straight from undergraduate level but are still treated as students while their peers may be earning, investing in mortgages and having children. They are still treated as students by the legal, tax and social welfare systems here. A move towards a recognised status with the normal payments made towards social welfare and pension systems would certainly strengthen the general professionalism and recognition of a doctoral student's studies. As it is a subject the Minister of State may have covered already or may have encountered it previously, I would be interested to hear his comments.

I commend the Minister of State on his important support for science and research. The figures for the uptake of computing and core science subjects show that our efforts are bearing fruit. The 25 bonus points initiative for maths was a positive move. It may not be the be-all-and-end-all for everybody, but it made a strong statement on the part of the State that maths is important and that we want to give bonus points to people of that calibre who take on maths at higher level.