TCD Professor appointed New Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government

Posted on: 21 December 2006

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment announced the appointment of Patrick Cunningham Professor of Animal Genetics at TCD to the office of the Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government on 19 December.

Professor Cunningham begins his post as Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government in January 2007. He will be responsible, via the Interdepartmental Committee for Science Technology and Innovation (STI), to the Cabinet Sub-Committee on STI, and will work with the range of implementation and oversight structures being established to advance the recently-published Strategy for STI (SSTI 2006-2013).

At the announcement of his new position, Professor Cunningham said, “There never was a better time for science in Ireland. The growth in the economy in recent years has been fuelled largely by our rising capacity across many fields of knowledge. In the National Development Programme we have a strong commitment to science and technology over the next six years. The establishment of the Office of Chief Scientific Adviser is part of that commitment, and I very much welcome the challenge of helping to place Ireland among the leading countries in the world of science.”