Rise in R&D investment puts Irish firms ahead of global average

Investment by Irish companies in research, innovation and development is now more than double the global average.

Companies based in Ireland increased R&D investment by 13.6% in 2013 compared to 2.6% elsewhere in Europe and 4.9% around the world.

Details of the European innovation scoreboard were published in Brussels this morning.

EU Commissioner for Research and Innovation Carlos Moedas said Ireland's investment has way surpassed its European neighbours.