Maximising job creation must be the focus of the billions spent annually within the EU on research and innovation, Minister of State Sean Sherlock says.

Chairing a meeting of EU research and innovation ministers in Dublin Castle last Thursday, he said research and innovation are central to job creation and economic growth, ‘both priorities of the Irish Presidency’.

“They are areas where the public and private sector within the EU spend many billions each year. That’s why I invited EU Ministers to Dublin to discuss how we can maximise job creation and economic growth from this massive yearly spend.”

The meeting was the first day of a two-day informal meeting of the EU’s Competitiveness Council which was being held as part of the Irish Presidency of the European Union. On Friday Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton chaired a meeting of EU Enterprise and Industry Ministers.

“We know that those who are without jobs are at most risk of poverty,” Minister Sherlock told the assembled ministers. “Life chances diminish considerably for those who enter poverty traps and long term structural unemployment. Cyclical, generational unemployment affects families and whole communities. This influences their health, their education, their ability to participate in the labour market, their purchasing power, their technological know-how and their contribution to society generally,” he told them, warning “these are all matters that should concern us as policy makers in the research and innovation area.”

A number of presentations were made by Irish research and innovation experts. “Our discussions touched on a number of important issues including achieving higher levels of participation in R & D programmes and how best Europe’s universities can promote innovation. We also discussed best practice for innovation management for SME’s and improving the effectiveness of public innovation supports for SME’s,” he explained.