Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 13 July 2017
70. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her views on whether the lack of a multi-annual commitment to the PRTLI by her Department retards its ability to attract matching funding from private sector or EU sources. [34335/17]
View answerMy Department’s allocation to the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI) in 2016 was €30.4m; this included a Supplementary Estimate of €20m in December 2016. The allocation in 2017 is €14.4m. The 2017 PRTLI allocation is being used to pay off an outstanding bill for PRTLI Cycle 5. As with previous cycles, there is a long lead time before the total spend and the administrative obligations associated with the funded projects are finalised. There has been a longer repayment period for Cycle 5 than initially expected due to financial constraints during the course of this Cycle. As a result the immediate priority for the PRTLI allocation has been to repay the HEI payments owed from Cycle 5.
I am conscious of the impact that Exchequer funding, including the PRTLI has had in enabling the HEIs to attract other sources of funding, particularly in the case of capital infrastructure projects. PRTLI-funded infrastructure and consortia are a key attractor of co-funding from private (non-exchequer) sources. The Exchequer element of previous cycles of the programme have also benefitted from co-funding from EU "Structural Funds".
The planning and design of a successor to Cycle 5 of PRTLI is an action in Innovation 2020 and is being progressed by my Department working closely with the Department of Education and Skills. My Department has included a proposal to commence funding for a successor to Cycle 5 of the PRTLI in its submission to the Mid-term Review of the Capital Plan. As part of the planning for a new Cycle of PRTLI, my Department is examining co-funding opportunities including from the private sector and from EU sources. There will be more clarity on a successor to Cycle 5 when the Mid-term Review of the Capital Plan is concluded, and the funding envelope for this and other projects is finalised.
