The Taoiseach spoke of a spiralling wage inflation at a time when people's wages are flat and those people are put to the pin of their collars.

Scientific research has been a key plank of Ireland's economic and industrial policy and it has also been vital in enabling us to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. That is down to our scientists, many of whom were inspired to go into research through their engagement with Science Gallery Dublin. Science Gallery Dublin has gone international, with offshoots ranging from the United States to Australia. Next month, however, the original gallery here in Ireland is set to shut its doors for the last time, undermining our strategy as a country to position itself as a world leader in science and technology. Reading between the lines, it seems the Departments of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and the Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media are in dispute as to which will contribute to the operational shortfall. This short-sighted internal bickering must stop and the doors of the gallery must be kept open for Ireland's sake.

The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has engaged with Trinity College Dublin. Along with the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, it has offered to provide funding for a number of years to help to contribute towards a sustainable model in Science Gallery Dublin. Trinity College Dublin needs to do work to develop a new vision and a sustainable financial model for the long-term future of the science gallery. The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is awaiting a submission from Trinity College Dublin on those matters. There is a separate issue around the contractual arrangements with the existing staff of the gallery and that is a matter for Trinity College Dublin and its staff.