Some of our best and brightest brains gathered outside the Dáil within the past hour to demand a living wage. Earlier in the year, through engagement with the Minister, Deputy Harris, PhD students had their income increased to €25,000 a year for full-time work, but that impacts on only 30% of the total PhD student population. The rest of them are creased trying to live in this country, so they are out there to demand a living wage for all PhD students. Without them, we would not have developments in engineering, science, climate change and medicine, which are absolutely needed to make this world a better place for all to live in. Could we recognise their value by paying them a decent living wage, moving in the direction of other EU countries and recognising them as employees, and reforming their visa status so that it will allow them to live here for the duration of their research and not have to make a costly annual reapplication?

I would be sympathetic. I have had a long-standing commitment to research. PhD students are the lifeblood of our research capacity, particularly in science, engineering and technology more generally but across the board, where I do not want to differentiate. The Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science announced an independent national review of State supports for PhD researchers, as the Deputy pointed out, with Dr. Andrea Johnson and Mr. David Cagney as co-chairs. They submitted their first report last May and a series of recommendations were made, including one to increase the stipend level with an optimal target of €25,000, subject to the availability of funding. We have to remain competitive with other countries in respect of our treatment of PhD students and I would support improving their overall remuneration.