Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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99. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he has conducted any review into the impact of the most recent legislative changes to the legal mandate of Science Foundation Ireland. [17124/15]

Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The remit of Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) was amended with the enactment of the Industrial Development (Science Foundation Ireland) Act 2013 (No. 36 of 2013). The amended remit enables SFI to fund applied as well as oriented basic research in strategic areas of opportunity for the State.

The Act as amended also enables SFI to:

- develop and extend the capability for the carrying out of oriented basic and applied research in institutions

- promote attraction to the State world class researchers and research teams in strategic areas of opportunity for the State

- provide funding on an all-Island basis, subject to excellence and strategic criteria being met;

- enter collaborative arrangements with international partners; and

- provide funding to promote the study of, education in and awareness of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The legislation provides that the Minister may prescribe by regulations the strategic areas of opportunity. The Industrial Development (Science Foundation Ireland) (Strategic Areas of Opportunity) Regulations 2013 (S.I. No. 476 of 2013) prescribed the areas identified in the National Research Prioritisation Exercise which was approved by the Government in March 2012 as strategic areas of opportunity for the purposes of the Act.

SFI reviews its funding mechanisms on an ongoing basis against international benchmarking, in the context of its strategic priorities and technology foresight. The objective of this continuous assessment is to ensure that all SFI programmes continue to deliver Government policy and the strategic objectives of the Foundation and that the appropriate structures and opportunities are available for the Irish research community to support the delivery of excellent science with impact.

In addition, assessments of the implementation of research prioritisation have been conducted and these include perspectives on how research prioritisation has been implemented by all funding organisations including SFI. There are no plans at present to carry out a specific review of the impact of the legislative changes to the remit of the Foundation.