Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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48. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will outline the new Innovate for Ireland initiative, including supports and the planned process under the initiative; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36748/22]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Taoiseach and I recently launched Innovate for Ireland, which is a new partnership between industry and the Government to recruit and retain research talent to Ireland.

Innovate for Ireland will commence in 2023 and the initial phase will seek to attract up to 400 high calibre PhD students to undertake research in Ireland that tackles national and global grand challenges such as climate change and climate adaptation; global health and pandemics; water poverty; digital society; and cyber-security.

The programme will embrace all relevant disciplines from Science, Technology and Engineering to Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. It will also support excellent curiosity-driven research. This programme aligns with my Department's Strategy Statement 2021-2023 and also the strategic goals of the Government’s recently launched new R&I Strategy, Impact 2030.

The programme will include dimensions of training in innovation, entrepreneurship and leadership. Relationships will also be formed between the students and the company sponsors.

The next step in implementing this proposal will be a competitive call for proposals from consortia of Higher Education Institutions, this is being developed and should be initiated later this year. Work has been undertaken by my Department, the Higher Education Authority, Irish Research Council, Science Foundation Ireland, Health Research Board and private sponsors on devising a possible call framework.

Officials from my Department will also be working with relevant Departments across Government on the implementation of the programme.