Exploring SME Investment Patterns in Ireland: New Survey Evidence. Quarterly Economic Commentary Special Article, Autumn 2018.

An empirical profile of SME investment in Ireland is critical to understanding the growth possibilities and productive capacity of Irish indigenous enterprises. However little is known about SME investment activity outside the more aggregate information. This paper uses new survey evidence compiled as part of the Department of Finance SME Credit Demand Survey to profile the types of assets SMEs are investing in, how firms are financing these investments and what barriers firms face to investment. We provide a detailed exploration of the trends across firms looking at different size classes, age groups, exporting status and sectors. A number of findings emerge. We find that two in every three SMEs invested in their staff; one-in-two invested in fixed assets; and less than one-in-ten invested in intangible assets in 2016. SMEs were in general satisfied with their investment levels or their current capacity with only one-in-five facing a capital gap. For those with perceived insufficient investment, a lack of internal funds, rather than access to external finance, was identified as the main reason. Finally, SMEs reported having significant liquidity levels in 2016. These findings suggest that any perceived sluggishness in borrowing or investment appetite could potentially be demand-side in orientation

SME investment report 2019: Developments between 2016 and 2018. ESRI Survey and Statistical Report Series 86 October 2020.

This report provides a statistical review of the data collected in a specific SME investment module on the Department of Finance Credit Demand Survey. The report presents survey data for the year 2018, with reference to 2016 and 2017 for context and comparison

The essentials of marine biotechnology.

Coastal countries have traditionally relied on the existing marine resources (e.g., fishing, food, transport, recreation, and tourism) as well as tried to support new economic endeavors (ocean energy, desalination for water supply, and seabed mining). Modern societies and lifestyle resulted in an increased demand for dietary diversity, better health and well-being, new biomedicines, natural cosmeceuticals, environmental conservation, and sustainable energy sources. These societal needs stimulated the interest of researchers on the diverse and underexplored marine environments as promising and sustainable sources of biomolecules and biomass, and they are addressed by the emerging field of marine (blue) biotechnology. Blue biotechnology provides opportunities for a wide range of initiatives of commercial interest for the pharmaceutical, biomedical, cosmetic, nutraceutical, food, feed, agricultural, and related industries. This article synthesizes the essence, opportunities, responsibilities, and challenges encountered in marine biotechnology and outlines the attainment and valorization of directly derived or bio-inspired products from marine organisms. First, the concept of bioeconomy is introduced. Then, the diversity of marine bioresources including an overview of the most prominent marine organisms and their potential for biotechnological uses are described. This is followed by introducing methodologies for exploration of these resources and the main use case scenarios in energy, food and feed, agronomy, bioremediation and climate change, cosmeceuticals, bio-inspired materials, healthcare, and well-being sectors. The key aspects in the fields of legislation and funding are provided, with the emphasis on the importance of communication and stakeholder engagement at all levels of biotechnology development. Finally, vital overarching concepts, such as the quadruple helix and Responsible Research and Innovation principle are highlighted as important to follow within the marine biotechnology field. The authors of this review are collaborating under the European Commission-funded Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) Action Ocean4Biotech – European transdisciplinary networking platform for marine biotechnology and focus the study on the European state of affairs

An exploration of the attitudes of staff in the clerical officer to assistant principal grades to the Performance Management and Development System in the Department of Finance.

On the 4 May 2000 General Council report 1368 formally introduced the Performance Management and Development System (PMDS) into the Irish Civil Service. A performance management system up until this point had not been formally practiced in the Civil Service despite previous attempts to do so. What was different this time around was political support for the introduction of the system, top management support and the social partnership agreements provided a means for linking increases in pay subject to progress on modernization agenda. This dissertation will explore the concept of performance management and its application in the Department of Finance with special emphasis on the opinions of staff

A cross country perspective on Irish enterprise investment: Do fundamentals or constraints matter?

Numerous research papers have used Irish-only data to test for the presence of an investment gap for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In this paper, we use cross country firm-level survey data from the World Bank Enterprise Surveys to explore the investment patterns of Irish SMEs in a crosscountry context and test whether an investment gap is present when compared to other countries. We use an accelerator model of investment which links capital expenditure to firm output growth and test the sensitivity of investment to this key fundamental for Ireland and other countries. We then estimate whether Irish firms face an investment gap relative to their European peers. We test whether any differences in cross country patterns are driven by variation in financial factors (such as credit access or indebtedness) or firm quality (managerial experience, website usage, operating profitability). We find that Ireland's investment in fixed tangible assets is relatively well explained by these factors whereas a clear underinvestment in research and development expenditure emerges. Factors associated with investment in research and development include the degree of foreign technology usage, digitalisation and internationalisation

Empirical observations of the spawning migration of European eels: The long and dangerous road to the Sargasso Sea

International audienceThe spawning migration of the European eel (Anguilla anguilla L.) to the Sargasso Sea is one of the greatest animal migrations. However, the duration and route of the migration remain uncertain. Using fishery data from 20 rivers across Europe, we show that most eels begin their oceanic migration between August and December. We used electronic tagging techniques to map the oceanic migration from eels released from four regions in Europe. Of 707 eels tagged, we received 206 data sets. Many migrations ended soon after release because of predation events, but we were able to reconstruct in detail the migration routes of >80 eels. The route extended from western mainland Europe to the Azores region, more than 5000 km toward the Sargasso Sea. All eels exhibited diel vertical migrations, moving from deeper water during the day into shallower water at night. The range of migration speeds was 3 to 47 km day−1. Using data from larval surveys in the Sargasso Sea, we show that spawning likely begins in December and peaks in February. Synthesizing these results, we show that the timing of autumn escapement and the rate of migration are inconsistent with the century-long held assumption that eels spawn as a single reproductive cohort in the springtime following their escapement. Instead, we suggest that European eels adopt a mixed migratory strategy, with some individuals able to achieve a rapid migration, whereas others arrive only in time for the following spawning season. Our results have consequences for eel management