Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 January 2026
1170. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the commitments his Department will give to increasing investment in research, supporting early-career researchers, and ensuring Ireland remains competitive in EU and global innovation programmes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6246/26]
View answerMy Department secured a total allocation of €4.55bn through the National Development Plan review process. Over half of this allocation - €2.45 billion - will be invested into Ireland's research and innovation system, reaffirming Ireland’s commitment to a knowledge-driven society and an innovation-led economy. In December, I published the Tertiary Sector Capital Investment Plan 2026–2030 which sets out a strategic roadmap detailing how this investment package will support higher education and research and innovation - driving growth, fostering talent, and building world-class infrastructure for the next five years. These strategic investments reflect Government’s unwavering commitment to talent, innovation, and opportunity, ensuring Ireland thrives in the decades ahead. Specific developments include:-
• €750m research infrastructure investment package (INSPIRE) which includes progressing Ireland's High-Performance Computing capability; expanding Tyndall National Institute; competitive funding for research equipment that is used routinely within a higher education institution for teaching and research purposes and, finally, funding for advanced infrastructures shared across a number of institutions and external users.
• Ireland continues its strong record of success in Horizon Europe having secured €1.07 billion since the beginning of the Framework Programme in 2021. This represents 2.03% of total funding awarded under Horizon Europe. This is equivalent to a rank of sixth among EU Member States on a per-capita basis. With two years of the programme remaining, Ireland is well positioned to exceed the €1.5 billion national target set in Impact 2030.
• Continued and developing engagement with international research organisations at the forefront of scientific endeavour, including CERN, which will ensure that our research and innovation community can access and leverage key international infrastructure.
• Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland was established in 2024 and is currently finalising its first five-year plan which will provide competitive research funding and support to researchers across all career stages to ensure that we maintain a strong research talent pipeline who are supported and enabled to maximise the impact of their research for society and enterprise. This system-focused approach as set out under Impact 2030, and reinforced by the funding commitments by Government through the National Development Plan, will deliver a research and innovation system which is well placed to ensure Ireland's competitiveness into the future.
