Navy saying nothing about decision to shut IMERC

The Irish Naval Service has declined to comment directly on the decision to wind down an award-winning marine research facility in which it was a joint partner.

Entrepreneurs in the sector have sharply criticised the decision by University College Cork and the Cork Institute of Technology to withdraw staffing and funding from the Irish Marine and Energy Research Cluster (Imerc) in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork.

The decision was made on foot of a controversial 2016 report commissioned by the two colleges into the operation of Imerc — a collaborative initiative which was established jointly by UCC, CIT, and the Irish Naval Service in 2010 to make Ireland a world leader in the commercialisation of marine research projects.