2026-04-22

I move: That Dáil Éireann approves the exercise by the State of the option or discretion under Protocol No. 21 on the position of the United Kingdom and Ireland in respect of the area of freedom, security and justice annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, to take part in the adoption and application of the following proposed measure: Proposal for a Council Decision on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union vis-à-vis the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland regarding the determination under Article 540(2) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, of the date from which personal data under Article 537 of that Agreement may be supplied by Member States to the United Kingdom, a copy of which was laid before Dáil Éireann on 27th February, 2026. Today I am seeking the approval of Dáil Eireann to opt in to a Commission proposal for a Council decision to allow member states of the European Union to resume the automated searching and matching of vehicle registration data, VRD, to the United Kingdom. This proposal comes within Title V legal basis and as a result it triggers Ireland's right or discretion to opt in under Protocol 21 annexed to the Lisbon treaty. I am seeking the support of the House for an Article 2 opt-in, which must be completed by 30 April of this year. I must emphasise that this is not a new capability. Under the Prüm decisions, by which Ireland is bound, participating EU member states can search and exchange DNA, fingerprints and vehicle registration data with other member states via automated means for the purpose of preventing and investigating criminal offences. Following the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement was signed and concluded. It includes provisions on VRD exchange which required the United Kingdom to undergo an evaluation process before the exchange of VRD could be resumed with all member states, including Ireland. This evaluation process has now been successfully concluded. The unilateral declaration presented as an annex to the proposal will determine the date from which member states may resume the supply of vehicle registration data to the United Kingdom. The date will be determined once the Council decision is adopted and the desire from all parties is to see this resumed as soon as possible. Vehicle registration data includes the personal data of drivers, owners and operators of vehicles, and details of those vehicles such as make, model, colour, licence plate and chassis number. In Ireland, these details may be supplied to other participating states from the National Driver and Vehicle File. The relevant national legislation is the Vehicle Registration Data (Automated Searching and Exchange) Act 2018, which designated the Minister for Transport as the national contact point. I understand the Minister, Deputy O’Brien, will amend the 2018 Act by way of statutory instrument to include reference to the trade and co-operation agreement. His Department is engaging with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel in this regard. The proposed Council decision has a Title V legal basis in the area of police co-operation. Its publication by the Commission on 30 January 2026 therefore triggered the three-month window for Ireland to exercise an opt-in under Article 3 of Protocol 21 annexed to the Lisbon treaty. This window ends on 30 April 2026. Legal advice from the Attorney General has confirmed that a Protocol 21 opt-in is required to satisfy Article 29.4.7° of the Bunreacht na hÉireann and to guard against a risk of legal challenges to criminal proceedings where VRD is utilised in the future. Ireland successfully negotiated additional recital language to better reflect our Protocol 21 rights and our sovereignty in the area of freedom, security and justice. This proposal will promote enhanced police co-operation between Ireland and the UK. Our shared border and ferry transport links mean it is imperative that the competent authorities in both jurisdictions have access to this information-exchange mechanism. In operational and policy terms, it is considered desirable for Ireland to exercise an Article 3 opt-in to these proposals so that we can again supply vehicle registration data to the United Kingdom and receive data in return. I commend this proposal to the House and seek the approval of the motion to participate in this Council decision.

We are discussing another Protocol 21 opt-in but this time it relates to the Council decision that would allow member states to resume the exchange of vehicle registration data with Britain for the prevention and investigation of criminal offences. It is important to note that the State already participates in automated searching and matching of vehicle registration data with EU member states under the Prüm decisions and, therefore, did so with Britain prior to Brexit. The Prüm decisions is a framework for EU countries to automatically exchange DNA, fingerprints and vehicle registration data and to co-operate in policing, counterterrorism and tackling cross-border crime. Vehicle registration data includes personal information about drivers, owners and operators of vehicles as well as details of the vehicles themselves - for example, make, colour, model, licence plate and chassis numbers. Sinn Féin does not oppose this motion because it relates to the prevention and investigation of serious criminal offences and co-operation in this area to crack down on serious criminality that operates on an international or cross-border basis is clearly important. However, it is important that this House is clear about the safeguards that are required when transferring personal data to Britain which now operates outside of the EU and, therefore, is not subject to the same laws in terms of data. I ask the justice Minister to assure the Oireachtas that robust protections will be in place to ensure that this data is not misused, retained longer than necessary or shared with third parties. Since Britain is now a third party under EU law, the standard of protection has to be equivalent to EU GDPR regulations. It is important that we remember the original purpose of the Prüm framework. It was designed for serious criminal offences and not just for routine enforcement. It is essential that this data is used strictly for the prevention and investigation of serious crimes. We cannot allow these types of data-sharing arrangements to drift by degrees into the type of surveillance I think many people would be rightfully fearful of. Separately and outside of any EU framework, we have to acknowledge the policing challenges that arise in this country as a result of the fact that we are a partitioned nation and that part of our country operates outside of the EU. That affects the ability for the policing of communities and roads policing is one of the areas most affected. I represent a Border constituency. Time and again we have seen the Border used to evade prosecution for road traffic offences. Obviously, in the short term North-South co-operation is essential but the reality is that the solution to that particular issue is the simplest solution of all: it is to get rid of the Border on this island and to work towards the reunification of our country. I make a general point on the opt-ins that fall under the areas of freedom, security and justice. I have made this point on many occasions. Protocol 21 was attached to the Lisbon treaty and it was put in place recognising the concerns of the Irish people in respect of sovereignty and the wish of the Irish people that decisions relating to these matters should be made at a domestic national level where that is possible. However, we have seen a drift particularly with this Government and under this Minister where increasingly Protocol 21 regulations opt-ins are being brought before the Dáil with limited debate. I do not believe there is the consent or even the knowledge of the Irish people in respect of decisions that could have far-reaching consequences. In this case we are talking about something that I think will be broadly supported by everybody in this House but not all cases are as clear-cut as that. I am fearful about the lack of actual debate on and rationale behind some of the decisions that have been made.

As Deputy Carthy set out, Sinn Féin is not opposing this. I recognise the importance of the item before us in terms of targeting serious criminality. However, we have to be very clear that Britain is now a third country and has been since Brexit. It is very important that there are strong measures when it comes to data protection and that the regime that will underpin the sharing of data here is as strong as if not stronger than the general data protection regulation that is in force within the European Union. I share the concern and the criticism, or certainly the analysis, outlined by Deputy Carthy with regard to the real increase in the number of Protocol No. 21 opt-ins, which have become a feature of this Government. It seems to be undoing, maybe, some of the limited protections that were appended to the Lisbon treaty several years ago by stealth, without adequate levels of scrutiny and without adequate levels of debate. It might not be the case in this particular instrument that has come before us but there is a need for greater scrutiny and greater transparency when these opt-ins are proposed, debated and scrutinised in this House and in the Oireachtas as a whole. This relates to serious criminality but there is another issue I want to use this opportunity to highlight and it is about road safety. As Deputy Carthy said, the nature of partition complicates policing on this island. We have a porous Border, and rightly so. The only thing that would improve it would be if we were to take it away altogether, and that is another day's work. Road safety concerns and the policing of road safety are a particular issue not only in the northern third of our country but also in the south east, where I am a representative, because of our links with Wales, in particular. The N25 is widely regarded as the most dangerous stretch of national primary road in the State. It is also a European route and one of the most dangerous ones in the European Union. The N24, which connects Rosslare onwards with Limerick and skirts Waterford, is also a very dangerous stretch of road. Both roads have not had their share of investment and safety improvements. What is making that situation all the worse is the sheer volume of traffic on both those roads comprising vehicles generally registered and regulated in Britain. There needs to be a good piece of work done by both the Minister's Department and the Department of Transport to get to the bottom of that issue and to make sure there is serious co-operation between authorities in Britain and authorities here when it comes to policing our roads and pursuing those who flout the rules of the road in Ireland, regardless of the jurisdiction in which they are registered.

I welcome this. As regards An Garda Síochána doing its policing duty, obviously, it will be very welcome. As regards the whole initiative of ANPR and number-plate recognition and the sharing of data, hopefully this will help, obviously, given the fact that we have a Border on this island. There is also the amount of traffic coming from Britain into Ireland and vice versa. It will particularly help in relation to serious crime. As we know, it is trans-border. On both islands, this will create a co-operation that is desperately needed. From a policing point of view, I have read the Minister's statement as regards the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, bringing in the statutory instrument. Could the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, provide the timelines for when this will actually take effect? If he were to have any information on that, it would be interesting. Second, obviously, we need to be very careful as regards the use of data here because this data will identify people and so on. We need to be very careful to make sure the standards that are maintained here meet with our national standards and EU standards, given the fact that we are dealing with a third country, outside the EU, in the United Kingdom. As I have raised here in the Dáil and in committees on numerous occasions, I am not convinced that An Garda Síochána has been in any way exemplary when it comes to the retention of data, whether the issue has related to DNA, fingerprints or many other areas. My concerns there would lead me to want to know when this will be brought in and to get an assurance about the manner in which this data will be retained, the duration of its retention and how it will be used. That should obviously be done to the standard that is required under national legislation and legislation at a European level to maintain those standards.

I am afraid our next speaker has not arrived, so I call on the Minister to make concluding remarks.

I thank Deputies Carthy, McGuinness and Kelly for their contributions. Deputies Carthy and McGuinness expressed a concern about the use of Protocol 21 and a concern that this was in some way interfering with Ireland's sovereignty or autonomy. When it came to the Lisbon treaty, we agreed, and we got input into it, Protocol 21. That was for the benefit of Ireland. We wanted to leave outside of the agreement of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union issues in the area of justice, legal affairs and police co-operation because we wanted to do our own thing. The reason we included Articles 3 and 4 is that we recognised there would be many occasions when we would want to opt in and be part of the agreements put forward by the European Union. This is a prime example of one where we should exercise the option to opt in under Protocol 21, Article 3. Here we have a situation in respect of an agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom for the purpose of sharing vehicle registration data. It is obvious to me that we would want to be part of that. In fairness to Deputy Carthy, he recognises that as well. This is clearly one where we should opt in. Every time a decision is made whether or not to opt in, it is not done haphazardly; it is done through the exercise of a sovereign decision-making process within the Irish State. We come to the Houses of the Oireachtas, the Government puts forward a proposal to opt in under Protocol 21, Article 3 or Article 4, and the elected representatives of the Irish people have an opportunity to vote on it, and we do so. As there is greater harmonisation throughout the European Union in the areas of law and police co-operation, I think we will see more cases of Ireland wanting to opt in because it is to our advantage. If there are proposals that we do not want to opt into, we will not go near them and I will not propose them. Deputies Kelly and Carthy mentioned the issue about data. Obviously, it is extremely important if we are sharing data of Irish citizens that it is protected. The only reason the data that is provided to the UK under the EU-UK agreement can be used is for the purpose of what is set out in the agreement, and that is for the purpose of investigating serious criminal activity pursuant to the vehicle registration data provisions. I do not want Deputies to believe that this data can be used for ulterior or parallel purposes. It can be used only for the purposes for which the agreement is entered into. Deputy Kelly also asked about the timelines. As I said, the relevant national legislation in Ireland is the Vehicle Registration Data (Automated Searching and Exchange Act) 2018. That has the Minister for Transport, currently Deputy O'Brien, designated as the national contact point. We will amend the provisions of the 2018 legislation by way of statutory instrument to include reference to the trade and co-operation agreement between the UK and the EU. I cannot give the Deputy a specific timeline but it is not a very lengthy amending statutory instrument. The Minister is engaging with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel and the Attorney General's office, which will draft the necessary statutory instrument. Certainly, I would like to see that done very promptly. It is not something that should take a considerable time. I heard what Deputy McGuinness said about road safety in the area of the south east and the sheer volume of traffic. Obviously, the Irish economy is very open. We export and import very significant amounts - more is exported, if the truth be told - and that will result in a lot of traffic coming from the UK and from France. Obviously, Rosslare has got much busier since Brexit because of direct links between France and Ireland but I hear what the Deputy says about the road safety issue. As the country gets busier, there will be more people on our roads and we need to ensure that road safety is prioritised. You yourself, a Cheann Comhairle, will know from the south east of the country that gardaí are out there in terms of roads policing. Gardaí are out there in terms of roads policing. It is a hugely important part of An Garda Síochána's function. We need to ensure that we keep the rules of the road enforced but there is also an obligation on everyone to slow down.

As we are so far ahead of time, it might be a good idea to suspend the House for about three minutes.