Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 244: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the reason Ireland decided against joining CERN; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15012/08]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation (2006-2013) recognises the importance for Ireland in building its international collaborative networks in science and highlights the importance of making investments in a way that produces the greatest benefit to Ireland. Ireland is currently involved in various international programmes and initiatives including the European Seventh Framework Programme for Research (FP7), the European Space Agency, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, EUREKA, the network for market orientated research and development and COST, European co-operation in the field of scientific and technical research.

In 2001 a detailed assessment of Irish participation in intergovernmental research organisations, which included CERN, was conducted by the Georgia Institute of Technology on my Department's behalf. While the resulting report to Forfás recommended that Ireland should not join CERN at that point, I am cognisant of the need to keep under review developments and opportunities at international and European level and to ensure that our investments assist us to build a strong national research capacity that will attract and retain researchers. At my request, the Advisory Science Council (ASC) is undertaking a study, on Ireland's International Engagement in Science, Technology and Innovation, which should be completed later this year. This study will help to guide decision making on the international research organisations in which Ireland should seek closer involvement. In this regard, it is important to appreciate that decisions about joining international research organisations must take into consideration the opportunity costs involved (membership fees may mean less funding available for research at home) and the capacity of the research community to derive and optimise benefits from such memberships.