Announcing the results at today's national launch of the final Work Programme for Horizon 2020, which will run until the end of Horizon 2020, Minister Halligan said: “To date, Ireland has won €475 million in competitive funding and is now poised to capitalise on the opportunity of the Horizon 2020 work programme for 2018 -2020 with its budget of €30 billion. Ireland is already a winner in Horizon 2020 but we cannot be complacent As we enter the final work programme of Horizon 2020, I encourage all researchers; in companies, Higher Education Institutes and public bodies, to be ambitious in the next stage of Horizon 2020. These are the entities which are already competing at the highest levels of European research, I urge them to engage with the National Support Network for Horizon 2020 to seize this opportunity.”

Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General of Science Foundation Ireland and Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government said: “Ireland has done well in securing competitive funding through the first phases of the European Horizon 2020 programme. This success has been driven by world-class academic researchers and innovative companies, with the SFI Research Centres making an important contribution to our national targets. I believe that we can do even better in the 2018-2020 work programme. We must ensure that our best researchers continue to lead and succeed - and especially that they are supported to win impactful European research projects of scale. Innovation is key to the future productivity of our economy and to the sustainability and security of our society; working with our European partners ensures we are all more likely to achieve our common goals.”

Speaking at the launch event Dr. Imelda Lambkin, National Director for Horizon 2020 added, "The launch of the final work programme also provides the opportunity to celebrate the achievements of Ireland's researchers and companies. More than 1,100 applications have been successful so far, 536 to higher education researchers and 430 to companies, with Ireland's success rate above the EU average. We now have an opportunity to make bold progress to the end of Horizon 2020. The National Support Network for Horizon 2020, led by Enterprise Ireland, offers unrivalled expertise and is a hugely beneficial resource for both new and seasoned applicants to Horizon 2020 so my advice is to engage with this network as soon as possible."

Horizon 2020 is the EU's Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. It is one of seven flagship initiatives in Europe 2020, the European Union's ten-year jobs and growth strategy. It has a budget of €75 billion and runs from 2014 to 2020. Horizon 2020 funding (i.e. grants) is awarded on a competitive basis to researchers and companies across three main pillars: Excellent Science, Leadership in Enabling and Industrial Technologies and Societal Challenges.