Seán Sherlock, TD, the Minister for Research and Innovation in the Irish Government, has welcomed the new EU innovation indicator, which classifies Ireland in third spot.  He said Ireland's performance under the new Indicator of Innovation Output is "highly significant", as it measures the extent to which ideas from innovative sectors are able to reach the market, providing better jobs and making Europe more competitive.  "This is a very positive indication of improvement in Ireland's competitiveness in key areas of the economy.