Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for taking this item which concerns the pension entitlements of those in the research sector. I am sure that, like me, he agrees that for our researchers it is essential that there is a very strong and clear career path for them and that as part of that, their pension entitlements are clarified and indeed that they are entitled to pensions. One of the things that we have invested a great deal of time in recently is around enhancing the research capacity of the technological sector.Unfortunately, we still do not have a resolution on the pension entitlements of those researchers working in the technological sector. The Minister of State will be aware of the impact on the former Limerick Institute of Technology, LIT, as part of the new Shannon university, of not getting clarity on the pension issues for research there and the concern that is causing.

If a person is to be employed as a researcher in one of the traditional universities as opposed to the new technological universities, he or she is treated in broadly the same way. The same terms and conditions apply across the board with perhaps one significant exception relating to pension entitlements. The pension entitlements of those in the traditional universities, for the most part, have been clarified. It is clear they are treated as public servants for pensionable purposes. Those in the technological university sector are not. Those in other State agencies, such as the Marine Institute or Teagasc, are treated in the same way as the traditional universities for pensionable purposes.

There is an equity question with respect to researchers. There is also the question of allowing our technological universities in a very competitive market to be able to build their research capacity. They must be able to ensure their research staff are treated in the exactly the same way. I understand, because of some of the historical questions, why this issue has not been resolved until now but this has been on the desk of the current Department and the previous Department, the Department of Education and Skills, for quite a number of years. There have been individual queries and the Technological Higher Education Association, THEA, has raised this on a regular basis. I do not know why it cannot be solved.

Even in situations where those researchers are funded by some of our State agencies, if they receive their funding from Science Foundation Ireland, the Irish Research Council or the Health Research Board, part of the funding or grant allocation includes allowing for pension coverage. This is a question of equity and of allowing higher education institutions to be able to compete on a level playing field in respect of researchers but, most importantly, it is about giving those researchers who have been impacted some level of certainty. THEA has estimated that approximately 450 people are impacted by this. This issue has been doing the rounds for years. I would be grateful if the Minister of State could give us some clarity and certainty with regard to the final decision that will be made on these pension entitlements.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Malcolm Byrne for raising this important issue. The question relates to the fact that researcher grades such as postdoctoral researchers, for example, have access to public service pensions in some higher education institutions but this access is not universal across the sector. My Department is currently working to support that standardisation of researchers’ pensions access in the higher education sector and has been engaging with the management bodies in the higher education institutes affected on the issue for some time.

Researchers in the institutes of technology and technological university sector do not have access to public service pension schemes. Researcher grades in traditional universities and other public sector bodies do have access to these schemes, as the Senator outlined.

My Department has been engaging positively with the management bodies in the higher education sector, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Department of Education to establish the requirements of a business case to support access to the single public service pension scheme for this group. Significant data have been sought by my Department in order to make a comprehensive and supportive case to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, which will made a final determination in this case. Most recently, further engagement with the sector took place with a view to establishing forecast data for future researcher numbers in the institutes of technology and the technological universities. These data will be incorporated into the overall business case, which is advancing well at this stage, and I expect it to be finalised shortly.The enablement of greater research capacity in the technological sector is a key factor in the technological university agenda, as Senators will know, along with other critical issues my Department is working on, such as the OECD review of academic contracts.

The Technological University Act was enacted in 2018. Since then, we have seen huge growth in the sector. We are soon to have five technological universities with the establishment of Atlantic Technological University on 1 April. That will followed soon after by the establishment of South East Technological University on 1 May 2022, about which Senator Malcolm Byrne knows very much.

Previously, the focus of the former institutes of technology was on teaching and regional engagement. The need for research in the sector is now more prominent. The Technological Universities Research Network, TURN, report was published in 2019. The report made 12 recommendations that will provide the technological universities with a solid foundation for their development. These recommendations fall within three thematic areas that the report has identified as being key building blocks for successful technological universities. One of these thematic areas relates to building research capacity. The report identified that research capacity would be enhanced through increased funding in human capital development, such as staff development and recruitment among other areas, for human capital growth. I am satisfied that this will be key in achieving strategic objectives for the sector under the Technological Universities Act 2018. The business case that my Department is working on will support this development.

Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply. There is very little I would disagree with, except that the answer that has been prepared for him does not respond directly to my question other than to say that his Department is continuing to work on this matter and that there will be an answer shortly. The researchers who are impacted by this situation are concerned because many of them have heard that the issue will be resolved shortly for quite a long time. The institutions that are impacted also have a difficulty. The Minister of State will be very familiar with one of them because it is on his doorstep. To localise this matter, what is happening means that the University of Limerick, UL, and Shannon can offer researcher posts with the same job description. However, UL can provide certain guarantees regarding pension entitlements for the researcher that Shannon cannot. That is unfair, and the situation is replicated right across the country. The Minister of State indicated that the matter will be resolved shortly, but a timeframe would be very much appreciated.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for raising this matter. What he has articulated encapsulates the issue. I shall take as an example, as the Senator has done, the city that is closest to me. In Limerick, two organisations can offer the same job but with hugely disparate terms and conditions. The Department and I fully get that pension entitlements are fundamental to people taking up jobs. I assure the Senator that while I do not have a timeline to give him now, this matter is a priority within the Department and it is being worked on.