Naoise Ó Cearúil (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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31. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will provide details of the support package under the proposed Global Talent Initiative, particularly in relation to attracting US research talent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26187/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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I was happy to announce on May 13th that Government had given their agreement to my proposals to establish a Global Talent Initiative to bring global research talent to Ireland. At a time when uncertainty looms for many researchers around the world, Ireland offers stability, opportunity, excellence and a gateway to the EU.

My Department will continue their work with Taighde Éireann- Research Ireland to design a call which will be launched this summer.

The programme will have an initial budget of €8m per annum. It is anticipated that this figure will support up to 15 researchers per year. In addition to salary, there will be other significant costs associated with the programme that will also have to be factored in. These would include for example the wider research team that would be associated with a particular individual, research equipment, laboratory space, overheads such as administration, infrastructure, work related travel and other ancillary costs.

The investment required to attract established researchers as well as rising stars will not only facilitate the projects they are investigating, it will also attract further high-calibre talent and add to the knowledge and skills base within the Irish higher education landscape adding a significant multiplier effect.

I look forward to being able to provide further information on this new programme in due course.