£62m for research pledged to colleges

Research funding of £62 million has been awarded to eight third-level institutions around the State. The funding will be used to provide new laboratories, equipment, buildings and infrastructure for science and environmental research projects.

The largest sum went to a joint UCD/Trinity College programme on biomolecular and biomedical research. The colleges were awarded almost £27 million for the study of molecular medicine.

University College Cork received over £13 million to develop an Environment Research Institute in conjunction with an eco-site. This is being developed with the Atlantic University Alliance, which includes the University of Limerick.

Almost £9 million was awarded to NUI Galway for an Environmental Change Institute and a Centre for the Study of Human Settlement and Historical Change.

The Royal College of Surgeons received over £7 million for the establishment of a Biopharmaceutical Sciences Network. Other awards went to the Cork Institute of Technology, the Sligo Institute of Technology, NUI Maynooth and Trinity College Dublin.

This research investment will slow the "brain drain" from Irish universities, according to Dr Tom Mitchell, chairman of the Conference of Heads of Irish Universities. "For too long we have seen Ireland's best graduates lured to foreign universities for their research training and the great bulk of them never returned because the facilities and supports did not exist to enable them to achieve their academic potential," Dr Mitchell said.

Announcing details of the awards, the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, said it was encouraging to see a number of institutions collaborating in new projects and ideas. The co-operation between institutes was also welcomed by Dr Don Thornhill, chairman of the Higher Education Authority. He said the partnership between UCD's Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research and TCD's Institute of Molecular Medicine could be a world leader. This £62 million investment is the second part of a Government funding research programme, which has already provided £162.5 million for 11 third-level institutions.

The Minister for Science and Technology, Mr Treacy, said we must continue to build a knowledge-based economy with an increased proportion of high income, high value-added jobs if growth in living standards is to be achieved.