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Jobs & Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton and Research & Innovation Minister Sean Sherlock today welcomed the opening of the Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF) in the Convention Centre Dublin.

ESOF is the largest and most prestigious European general science meeting and is held in a leading European city every two years. The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation has provided substantial support for ESOF 2012 and Dublin City of Science on behalf of the Government

Addressing the opening ceremony, Minister Bruton said:

As a country we have a long history of scientific achievement, and in the past decade we have built upon that heritage with dramatic improvements in publicly-funded scientific research.  In 2003 Ireland was ranked 36th in the world for quality of scientific research output; in 2010 we were 20th. In 2000 our total spend on publicly-funded R&D was €290million; in 2010 it was over €800 million.

Dublin City of Science is a great opportunity for Ireland to show the global scientific and business community that we truly are a centre of scientific excellence. I congratulate all involved in what looks like being an amazingly successful festival, and look forward to an exciting programme of events.

Minister Sherlock said:

I see science as being very much a core part of employment creation and retention. Events such as ESOF have the potential to capture the publics’ imagination and encourage students to take up science-based careers. This is a show case of world-class scientific endeavour.

The ESOF 2012 general science conference is the centrepiece of the activities that mark Dublin as the City of Science for 2012, and is the largest scientific gathering in Europe this year, with over 5,000 delegates expected to attend.

MerrionStreet.ie spoke to Minister Bruton at the ESOF in advance of the opening ceremony. Watch the video below...