Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 March 2026
524. Deputy Donna McGettigan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to ensure that adequate funding is made available to third level institutes so that research centres can remain open, following concerns raised by an organisation (detail supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21057/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraTaighde Éireann - Research Ireland is a competitive research and innovation funding agency which supports excellent research on a competitive basis. This funding sits alongside competitive awards from other Irish funding bodies, EU and international competitive funding activity and individual higher education institutions’ decisions in relation to the utilisation of core and other funding.
In order to drive excellence in Irish research activity and to ensure that funding mechanisms can provide for new and developing areas of focus, Research Ireland awards are granted on a competitive basis and for a specific duration and purpose. In the context of research centres awards, the previous iteration of the Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland Centres programme is completing this year as planned following a successful, scheduled, six-year duration.
Where an existing centre has not been successful in the 2023 research centres call, Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland has engaged closely with the employing higher education institutions and participating researchers to ensure an orderly completion of the current round of awards and to support them to engage with future opportunities. This process is part of each cycle of the centres programme and previous participants have gone on to continued success through other funding mechanisms, including through alternative Research Ireland calls.
The ability to fund the new research centres reflects additional investment secured under the National Development Plan through my Department, underscoring the Government’s commitment to research and innovation as a driver of national competitiveness. The call for proposals under the 2023 Taighde Éireann - Research Ireland Centres Programme was highly competitive, reflecting the strength and ambition of the research community. As a competitive process, not all applications can be funded. This does in any way not reflect on the existing or prior work of any centre but speaks to the very high quality of application across the board in driving Irish research activity and excellence forward.
