Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 17 Apr 1996

Vol. 464 No. 1

Written Answers. - Science and Technology Funding.

Eric J. Byrne

Ceist:

16 Mr. E. Byrne asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the plans, if any, he has for disbursing the extra funding for science and technology allocated in the 1996 budget in view of the STIAC report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7649/96]

Minister for Enterprise and Employment (Mr. R. Bruton)

The Government has allocated additional funding of £4 million in 1996 to begin the process of implementing the STIAC recommendations. These funds will be disbursed through a variety of existing and new schemes operated by Forbairt.

The main features of the £4 million allocation include: a £700,000 boost to applied industry research in third level colleges; an increase of £700,000 in the allocation for the techstart scheme, for small firms taking on college graduates; an extra £500,000 for basic research and £200,000 for strategic research in 1996; allocating an additional £300,000 for the development of technology service centres by the regional technical colleges; a doubling of the PhD student grant to £2,000 a year; the provision of £100,000 to fund five two-year post doctoral fellowships per annum; a further £200,000 for international research collaboration; £200,000 extra for company technology audits and £250,000 for company technology brokerage; £200,000 towards a new programme involving collaboration, in research, among clusters of small firms; and £250,000 to be spent on the promotion of science, technology and innovation to remove the generally negative public perception towards science and technology.

Science, technology and innovation is about people and jobs. It is therefore central to our industrial development strategy.

The creation of employment derives from the survival and growth of companies and spin-off of that growth into the wider economy. Over the longer term, companies can only survive and compete in the market-place on the back of innovation, where their product is based on quality and uniqueness. This is more and more the case as international trade barriers come down and markets become more globalised. Innovation is more and more influenced by scientific research and technological development and is being applied at an ever quickening pace. Companies, therefore, require people trained in these disciplines to the highest international standards. All of this requires a significant change of attitude towards science and technology on the part of decision makers, industry, the scientific community and the public at large.

In summary, therefore, the strategy behind the allocation of the additional £4 million is to improve the public perception of science and technology, improve companies' ability to absorb technology, encourage business to invest more in R & D, encourage the third level colleges to provide the relevant skills and other resources to meet industry needs, and to forge better links between colleges and companies. This all-encapsulating approach, summed up as the national system of innovation, is at the heart of our approach to science and technology policy.