I move amendment No. 76: In page 26, after line 42, to insert the following: “(10) Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the compellability powers of an Oireachtas Committee, save for where the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight of Dáil Éireann and the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight of Seanad Éireann have otherwise provided.”. The amendment seeks to insert a new subsection in section 31, which would explicitly provide that, "Nothing in this section shall be con…

Section 31(2) refers to "any matter that is or has been or may be the subject of proceedings". The Minister of State mentioned "ongoing" legal proceedings. Which is it? Is it something that "has been"? Is it the case that if a matter "has been" dealt with and that proceedings are now finished and not ongoing that the subject matter is eligible? What I understand is standard is "ongoing", as the Minister of State said, but what I see written down in front of me are the words "or has been", which is a wider piece, an…

This matter needs clarity. Maybe a "'without prejudice to" clause could be added. I totally agree in respect of live, imminent or ongoing legal proceedings even where they are in a gap, for example, between a case and an appeal. However, historic matters, for example, should not end up being closed off. Later I will discuss amendments that deal with ethical issues that may arise during research and innovation. Because those same ethical conflicts may have led to court proceedings of some kind and we should not then…

I may table amendments on confidential information where there is an issue in respect of representation. There may be caveats in situations where information is obtained by a member of a board. To make it clear, it is notwithstanding areas where there is a public good that may be required in respect of a disclosure. I will come to that on Report Stage.

I move amendment No. 78: In page 31, line 19, after “appropriate” to insert “and in a manner which is accessible”. The amendment is relatively simple and requires that the agency when it promotes and disseminates "information concerning funding schemes" would do so "in a manner which is accessible". It has been emphasised that the Bill does not deal exclusively with research and funding. I hope higher and further education institutions will play a key role in this but they are not the only area. Research and innova…

Amendment No. 83 would impose an additional duty on the CEO when considering how decisions made by the agencies in respect of their assessment of applications would receive the appropriate balance in terms of disbursement of funding. The amendment provides that the CEO, in making a consideration, would have due regard to the need to uphold and advance the principle of parity of esteem between fields of activity and disciplines. Parity of esteem has come up repeatedly and is probably the most pressing issue, along w…

To be clear, we have heard it multiple times that parity of esteem is woven throughout and underpins the Bill but it is not anywhere in the Bill because it is very vague and I do not believe it is clear enough. There is a significant contradiction. We are constantly told that parity of esteem is here but it is nowhere to be seen. Not only is the phrase "parity of esteem" not found anywhere in this Bill, there is nothing that gives the effect. The Minister of State said there is language there that gives effect but …

I quoted the same section.

I read out the same section exactly to emphasise the point. Yes, it says all areas are included. What it does not say, however, is that they will all be treated equally or, if not equally, close to equally, or that there will be a balance in how they are treated. I acknowledge that no one thing is elevated in the Bill, but the concern is that one or two may be elevated in practice, and there is nothing in the Bill to stop that happening. The concern is that we will see an imbalance between those. I gave the example…

I move amendment No. 79: In page 31, line 20, after “independent” to insert “, impartial”.

I move amendment No. 80: In page 31, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “(7) The Agency shall ensure that in the allocation of resources and the design, disbursal and administration of schemes that the principle of parity of esteem between fields of activity and disciplines is upheld.”. I will withdraw the amendment and bring it back on Report Stage for further discussion.

I move amendment No. 81: In page 31, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “(7) The Agency shall have due regard to the need to ensure that the range of schemes put in place under this Part includes schemes of differing scales and purposes, including smaller schemes and targeted schemes which facilitate good quality outreach, research networking and education programming.”.

I move amendment No. 82: In page 32, line 26, after “independent” to insert “, impartial”. I am moving this amendment but the Minister of State previously made strong points on a similar amendment around the language of “impartial” versus “independent”, so I signal that I will withdraw it. The argument the Minister made was strong in the debate on a previous amendment. I believe I must move it, however, because it is the first in the grouping. Amendment No. 86 seeks to amend section 42 to provide that where the CEO…

I move amendment No. 84: In page 33, between lines 9 and 10, to insert the following: “(iv) the employment conditions of researchers at the applicant body,”.

I move amendment No. 85: In page 33, after line 41, to insert the following: “(g) to ensure that persons carrying out research funded under this Part are in receipt of attendant employment rights and protections, in line with the Salzburg Principles,”. I withdraw the amendment and reserve the right to introduce it on Report Stage.

I move amendment No. 85a: In page 35, between lines 27 and 28, to insert the following: “(6) The Board shall make regulations regarding conditions of funding and a process for withdrawal of funding from research projects which may contribute to contravention of international law, including contraventions of rulings of the International Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights.”.

I report progress.

I highlight a situation that has been developing further over the past week in our universities. I am a National University of Ireland Senator. I rarely speak about the universities exclusively but, right now, they are at the centre of some of the debate and activism we are seeing from the public demanding action in respect of Gaza and in terms of international human rights and international humanitarian law. For context, the last of Gaza's 12 universities was demolished by Israel in January. There are now no unive…

I move amendment No. 42: In page 12, between lines 7 and 8, to insert the following: “(h) in co-operation with An tÚdarás, promote, support and develop tangible plans to end precarious work in the higher education sector;”. I withdraw the amendment and reserve the right to reintroduce it on Report Stage.

I move amendment No. 44: In page 12, between lines 18 and 19, to insert the following: “(k) to promote and support the development of public-public partnerships in accordance with section 50;”. Amendment No. 44 will introduce a new function which will require that the agency will "promote and support the development of public-public partnerships in accordance with section 50". I will talk a little more about public-public partnerships in respect of the rest of this group of amendments. Amendment No. 79 is a simple …