Prof Philip Nolan is no longer “chief executive designate” of the State’s new agency Research Ireland, Minister for Research, Innovation and Science Patrick O’Donovan has confirmed.
Speaking to The Irish Times following a science summit he hosted at Farmleigh House on Wednesday, he acknowledged Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) had been through a difficult year with Prof Nolan dismissed as its chief executive by its board in May.
On August 1st, SFI merged with the Irish Research Council, backed by a new mandate and an annual budget exceeding €300 million to support research.
Five senior SFI staff members made protected disclosures last December involving claims against Prof Nolan, who in April 2023 had been appointed by the Government as chief executive designate of the new agency. He previously worked at UCD and Maynooth University — and came to prominence as a member of the National Public Health Emergency Team during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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An inquiry into the allegations found there was no bullying or breach of corporate governance but concluded he engaged in inappropriate behaviour and this could ground allegations of gross misconduct. Prof Nolan initiated a High Court challenge to his dismissal and strongly denies this charge. In an affidavit, he claimed issues arose because senior management was resisting reform.
In his address to the summit, Mr O’Donovan said Research Ireland needed to be fit for purpose to help meet future challenges to the Irish economy and accepted criticism from Prof Peter Thorne of Maynooth University about short-term research contracts and a lack of sustainable research for the public good, notably in addressing the climate and biodiversity crises facing every citizen of Ireland.
He also outlined for the first time how he had been diagnosed with epilepsy — “a life-changing condition” — after collapsing in the Dáil chamber in June 2023. While sudden unexplained death in epilepsy was a terrible reality, it claims 33 Irish lives annually, after a stay in hospital the right treatment was found “because of clinical research and pharmaceutical progression” to treat his particular form of the disease.
On the recruitment process to appoint a chief executive of Research Ireland, the Minister said it would be progressed soon. Celine Fitzgerald, who has filled senior management roles in the multinational, State, charity and SME sectors, was announced as interim chief executive in July.
Mr O’Donovan said Research Ireland “is getting on with the job as they’ve been assigned to do under the legislation which [the] Oireachtas has passed. We’re moving forward on that basis … It’s time to engage with researchers, engage with policymakers, engage with industry, talk to the wider community.”
The Minister told some of Ireland’s leading scientists that given the contribution of the Department of Science, it should be acknowledged as being on a par with an economic ministry; a status that should be consolidated with its current functions after the general election.
He said this year’s budget windfall had come from the science and technology sector, “but future scenarios need to be set out to insulate and protect Ireland for the next generation”.
As a science graduate, he accepted the reasoning behind bonus points for honours maths in the Leaving Certificate, but Mr O’Donovan said this should be extended to physics, applied maths and possibly chemistry to strengthen Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) in Ireland but also to acknowledge the “humongous amount of time” required to study these subjects.
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