2026-02-26

I move: That Dáil Éireann shall take note of the Report of the Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence entitled "First Interim Report", copies of which were laid before Dáil Éireann on 12th December, 2025. Tá áthas an domhan orm an chéad tuarascáil ón gComhchoiste Um Intleacht Shaorga a mholadh. Tá an teicneolaíocht iontach seo ag athrú ár sochaí agus is ceart go bhfuil an tír seo ag glacadh ról ceannaireachta sa díospóireacht domhanda seo. It is a great privilege to be able to introduce the first interim report of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence. I am very grateful for the work of my fellow members. We have worked in a collegial and collaborative way to achieve this first report, which has 85 recommendations covering a range of issues. Our committee has chosen to work in a way whereby we looked at artificial intelligence because it is cross-cutting; it impacts on every Government Department and nearly every Government agency. We took a decision that we would operate in a module formula and address issues over time, looking at AI in healthcare, energy and education. We started, obviously, with a state of the nation address. We are very grateful to the Minister of State for her input right at the start. However, we decided to look at this topic through three very specific lenses, namely, AI and children and young people, AI and older people and AI and disability. I have to say, that has helped to inform a lot of the work we have done. For me, personally, of all the witnesses, and many great witnesses appeared before our committee, hearing the voices of young people who came through the National Youth Council of Ireland and the youth advisory panel of the Office of the Ombudsman for Children on their perceptions of AI and how it is transforming their lives was particularly interesting. It is certainly important that we continue to listen to those voices as this debate goes on. In terms of the overall approach, what we are striving to do, and it certainly chimes with Government policy, is support and encourage innovation, balancing that with regulation to support the responsible use of artificial intelligence and the protection of fundamental rights. It is very important that we send out that clear message that innovation and regulation are not mutually exclusive and, indeed, go hand in hand. I was very glad to see that last week, the Government published the national digital and AI strategy. Indeed, it is very positive for our committee that many of its recommendations and reflections found their way into the strategy or are echoed in a lot of the priorities that are presented. I will raise a number of issues contained within our report and suggestions to Government as to where we should be going in positioning Ireland because it should be as a leader in this space. Quite rightly, there is a recommendation within our report and within the strategy that we need an all-of-government approach to artificial intelligence. It is interesting that the Government's strategy states that this is going to be led from the Department of the Taoiseach. While it is not a specific recommendation of our report, certainly, the reflective view of all members of the committee is that because it covers more than just the Department of enterprise, consideration should be given to placing the office of the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, at the Department of the Taoiseach. Enterprise is a very important part of how AI is having an impact, but this is much broader and has major societal implications so that is certainly an issue that should be considered. Our report and the 85 recommendations place a very strong emphasis on transparency, accountability and public trust. It is critical, as with any technology that is rolled out, that trust is always maintained. That is particularly true in the roll-out of AI in the public services. Both our report and the Government strategy talk about the need for more debate in public around AI and new technology and the opportunities and challenges. Our report recommends that we should have a citizens' assembly on AI, digitalisation and technology. It is critical that we engage all sectors of society in discussions on the potential benefits but also the pitfalls of this new technology. The use of public information campaigns so that people can actually understand what is happening is very important. The Minister of State may remember that at one time there was a very famous advertisement with the line "I don't know what a tracker mortgage is". It may be a case of reviving it along the lines of "I don't know what an algorithm is" and having those public information campaigns so that everybody in society can take part in the active debate around new technology. We place a lot of emphasis in our report on skills and literacy when we are talking about AI adoption. Our report very clearly recommends that emphasis be placed on a co-ordinated education initiative operating right through the education and training systems, and a lot of emphasis on AI literacy. This applies in schools and workplaces right throughout the entire system. This is something that is reflected in the Government strategy, particularly in terms of upskilling. I commend our colleague, the Minister for further and higher education, Deputy James Lawless, who has been talking about rolling out microcredential courses across the State ranging from very simply what is AI to support for SMEs about how they can embed AI to deliver their services more effectively. Our committee was very strong on opening an AI skills observatory. This is something the Minister of State is very committed to. This is very important. We know that the labour market is being impacted in many ways. The Department of Finance published a report specifically on this last week. There will be job displacement and jobs will be lost but equally there will be huge opportunities with new jobs as a result of AI. It is critical for us as a state to have real time information to be able to prepare for those changes and that can then inform the upskilling and reskilling of all of our citizens and those who live here. I want to turn to the national AI office. When the Minister of State came before our committee, we had quite a lot of discussion on this. She has a very strong commitment to that and ensuring it gets up and running, which is welcome. Unfortunately, even though there is a very specific committee on artificial intelligence, the legislation has gone to the enterprise committee. I appreciate the reason the rules of the House say that has to happen but we make the point that the AI office is about more than just enterprise. On the imminent recruitment of the first chief executive, he or she will set the direction and how the role will operate. We need to see that role as a facilitative role. It cannot be a “Thou shalt not” regulator or an additional layer of bureaucracy on top of the system. It should be about ensuring how society is able to responsibly use AI to get better results. Technology is not a goal in itself; technology is the enabler for us to be able to achieve better goals for all of humanity and it is critical that it is humans who are going to be in the loop. We are very clear that as part of this office there needs to be the establishment of the youth advisory panel. The Minister of State will be aware that within other offices, the Ombudsman for Children's Office and Coimisiún na Meán, this has worked very effectively. We need to ensure young people's voices and those who work with young people are heard at the discussion table but again, we emphasise the importance of the voices of older people and those with disabilities and that they are recognised and heard within the discussion. I want to praise the Minister of State’s role in terms of the leadership that she provided on this. We have dealt a lot with the controversy involving Grok and she has been very clear-minded and focused in that area. When she came before us that on the first occasion prior to report, she set out a very ambitious programme. She clearly committed and owned that we were going to have an AI summit in Ireland in October focusing on Ireland playing a leading role in the kinds of skills that we all need in the world of AI. I want to commend her leadership role and our committee looks forward continuing to work with her on preparation for that during the EU Presidency. It is vitally important that Ireland continues to take that leadership role and therefore I welcome the fact that the Minister of State took part in the global AI summit in India. I had concerns that Ireland was not going to be represented. Even though there is a diverse range of views on our committee, we think Ireland should inform and lead that debate and the values that we place on human rights and those fundamental rights, keeping humans in the loop - Ireland's values - will inform the global discussion on AI. It was critical that the Minister of State attended that summit. I appreciate that the EU Presidency is the focus but in terms of Geneva hosting the summit next year, I hope there will be a very strong Irish presence and input into that. The committee’s report made 85 recommendations. I pay tribute to my colleagues that we have worked in a cross-party way because we are all learning. This is a new technology. The reason we chose to do interim reports, and we will come out with another one, is to reflect the views that we are hearing because if we waited a few years for this report, things will have moved on quickly. There is a firm recommendation that the committee, which was set up as a medium-term special purpose committee, would be put on a permanent footing because the issues in the debates that we are dealing with and that we are facing is not just Grok. It is about what is happening in the employment market; the opportunities that are happening in healthcare; and the implications of AI energy use. All of those issues are going to continue to grow and it is critical that in the national Parliament we have a vehicle where they can be debated and views can be exchanged and that we can learn. I mentioned the awareness campaign and the general public. We need to look at doing it in here internally then within Leinster House as well so that people become very much aware of the transformational powers, positive and negative, of AI. We are using AI products, and rightly, already within Leinster House. Increasingly we know our constituents, businesses and organisations are raising issues relating to AI with us. A training programme in here for legislators, in the same way as it is intended to roll out training right across add the public service, is something that is important. Again, I thank the secretariat and my fellow members of the committee for all their work and for their input. We want to continue to work with the Minister of State and across all of the government in a collaborative way to ensure Ireland plays a leading role in the global debate around artificial intelligence to ensure that our citizens are equipped to be able to avail of the opportunities and to make sure that the necessary safeguards are in place to protect our fundamental rights.

I welcome the opportunity to address the House. I sincerely thank Deputy Byrne, as Cathaoirleach of the Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence, and the overall committee for the important work they have undertaken in their first interim report, which is the subject of this motion. The extensive engagement by the committee that informed this work, including the range of views and perspectives gathered through consultations, expert discussions and research is evident throughout. I appreciate the significant time and consideration that went into developing such a comprehensive report. We are at a pivotal moment in our digital transformation. The rapid progress of digital technologies, and Al in particular, is changing how we live, how we work and how we interact as a society. The opportunity Al offers is immense, but I am acutely aware that so is our responsibility to get it right. The Government recognises that Al is not just a powerful tool for business and the economy; it is an enabler of progress that can benefit society as a whole and improve he lives of our citizens. Al is not confined to any one sector, as the Cathaoirleach quite rightly alluded to. It is a cross-cutting technology that influences many areas of public policy and everyday life. The impacts of Al range from public service delivery, digital infrastructure, cybersecurity and online safety to enterprise and innovation, skills development and digital regulation. This requires a co-ordinated, coherent and ambitious whole-of-government response. That is exactly why, last week, the Government published our new national digital and Al strategy, Digital Ireland - Connecting our People, Securing our Future. The strategy reflects both the breadth of our ambition and the shared responsibility across government. It sets out five strategic and mutually reinforcing ambitions - apply, grow, invest, lead and empower - reflecting the agility needed to succeed in a fast-evolving digital world. Those ambitions are to apply digital and Al technologies to enhance public services; to grow our digital economy and profile as a location of choice for investment and as a global hub for Applied Al; to invest in secure, resilient, future-proofed digital infrastructure, including building our cybersecurity capacity; to lead as a trusted, agile and forward-looking digital regulatory hub and centre of excellence; and to empower all groups in society and the economy with the skills and literacy needed to participate confidently and safely in a digital and Al economy and society. In order to protect vulnerable groups, particularly children and young people, we will also enhance our online safety framework at both national and EU levels. Through 20 high-level objectives and 90 deliverables, the strategy outlines the concrete actions that will accelerate digital and Al adoption across enterprise, the public sector, research and academia. It also includes targeted measures to improve public services and strengthen our health service. The 85 recommendations in the committee's report naturally cut across the work of many Departments. I will focus specifically on some of the key recommendations that fall within my own remit. I am pleased to say that many of the recommendations are already under way. Starting with regulation and the national Al office, I acknowledge the emphasis the interim report places on ensuring robust and effective regulation is in place, and the important role of the national Al office in that regard. This aligns with the objectives and work of my Department, as does the report’s call for the national Al office to support Government, business and civic society in understanding and adopting trustworthy Al where appropriate. The Al Act is an EU regulation which provides a consistent and high level of protection for European citizens’ health, safety and fundamental rights, and provides certainty for the use of human-centred and trustworthy AI in the EU. As an EU regulation, it is directly applicable and binding to all EU member states and ensures uniform rules for artificial intelligence to be applied across the EU. That said, the Act also imposes obligations on member states that require national implementing measures, including establishing a regulatory regime to supervise and enforce the regulation and establishing a single point of contact. My Department is leading across government on the national implementation. We are making really strong progress on implementing the EU Al Act, the main supervision and enforcement provisions of which take effect from August 2026, with more specific rules to follow by 2027. The Government recently approved priority drafting of the legislation needed to give full effect to the Act. We have adopted a distributed implementation model so businesses can work with regulators who understand their sectors. My officials are engaging intensively and extensively with my Department, competent authorities and fundamental rights bodies to ensure Ireland is ready for the full implementation of the regulation of AI in Ireland. In parallel, work is progressing on the establishment of the independent statutory Al office of Ireland, which is scheduled to be in place by August 2026. The Government recognises the importance of Ireland's reputation as a trusted, agile, forward-looking digital regulatory hub, and of ensuring our regulators are independent and adequately resourced. The statutory status and governance structure of the Al office of Ireland reflects that of established regulator bodies and is in line with Government’s code of practice for the governance of State bodies. A budget of €1.5 million has been allocated for its start-up phase. The office will be the central co-ordinating body for the implementation of the EU Al Act and will leverage the expertise of regulators across all sectors to ensure that when Al is deployed, it is done in a responsible and ethical manner. The remit of the office will also include maintaining a central register to identify and monitor systemic risks across sectors, ensuring the establishment of the national Al regulatory sandbox, and establishing collaborative forums with representative groups from society to support transparency, accountability and effective governance as Ireland implements the EU Al Act. My officials are currently focused on the initial steps to stand up the new Al office of Ireland, including recruiting key personnel, developing the ICT framework, putting in place a single-point-of-contact structure, designing an extensive communications programme and putting in place a pool of technical expertise to support the competent authorities. The creation of the Al office of Ireland provides an opportunity to provide the Government with a permanent, independent source of expertise on Al. It will also promote the safe adoption of Al in our country. Recent online safety issues have highlighted just how essential it is to have a strong and effective legal framework in place. The committee’s report makes a number of recommendations in relation to online safety and has particular concern around recommender systems. I want to be clear that online safety, especially for children and young people, remains a whole-of-government priority. A significant body of legislation and regulation, including Coco's Law, the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act and the EU Digital Services Act, is already in place. From a digital regulation perspective, the DSA forms a central part of Ireland's online safety framework. It includes specific provisions on recommender systems to ensure transparency. Under the DSA, platforms must clearly explain the main parameters behind how content is suggested to users. Services accessible to minors must also ensure a high level of privacy, safety and security, including a ban on direct ads based on profiling when the user is a minor. It has been noted on a number of recent occasions in this House that several investigations are ongoing on these matters and the Attorney General and the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration are examining and will consider whether further legislative measures are needed in the area of non-consensual intimate images. In my own Department, we are liaising with the European Commission and member states to advocate for adding the use of AI systems for the generation of such images to the list of prohibited AI practices under the EU AI Act. Online safety is a core pillar underpinning the National Digital and AI Strategy 2030 and a priority for Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the European Union. These measures reinforce the Government's commitment to enhancing online safety, in particular for children and young people, as a whole-of-government and European priority. This brings me to another key focus of the report and a primary objective of the Al Act, namely, to promote and support the adoption of safe and trustworthy Al in enterprise and in our wider society. I have seen at first hand the impact Al can have on boosting productivity and enhancing competitiveness in firms of all sizes. This will be achieved through a new targeted sectoral strategy to drive enterprise Al adoption and by appointing new Al sector champions. We will also conduct an Al and digital awareness and literacy campaign for SMEs. It is important that we strengthen Ireland’s capability to understand and respond to the opportunities and challenges presented by Al. We are fully aligned with the committee on this point. For this reason, the new strategy includes actions to establish two observatories, which will provide the evidence base necessary to guide workforce, enterprise and innovation policy in the years ahead. First, on skills, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has recently signalled his intention to progress the establishment of the national skills observatory, which is envisaged will transform our skills intelligence landscape. It will provide a valuable source of data and insights on the labour market and skills, facilitating improved workforce planning, stronger policy making, and improved lifelong learning and workforce reskilling. In my Department, we will establish an observatory for business Al readiness, focused on enterprise adoption of Al. Together with the national skills observatory, this will inform the Government in shaping future Al-related enterprises and jobs policy. Finally, the committee’s report highlights the importance of the summit we are planning as part of our EU Presidency. I am happy to say work is well under way in the planning this flagship event, which will have the overall theme of enabling Al to power innovation-led growth across Europe. The summit has Government sponsorship at the highest level, bringing together over 1,000 global leaders, including CEOs, EU Ministers, officials, academia and innovators. As Ireland sits at the intersection of European and global tech, we are uniquely placed to convene meaningful dialogue. I am very much looking forward to showcasing Ireland's leadership in AI and digital innovation. I will finish by saying that our vision is clear. We want to build an environment where AI and digital innovation empower our people and strengthen our economy and society in a way that is ethical, inclusive and sustainable. I look forward to the debate today. I will conclude by thanking all of the colleagues here today. This reflects many of the recommendations that have been made. I thank each and every Deputy for their contributions. I know they have worked extensively and very intensively. I tuned in to the AI committee hearing on Tuesday. I also want to put on the record my disappointment that some of the biggest companies here in Ireland, Microsoft and OpenAI, were not in a position to attend. I am equally disappointed that the committee did not get any response from X at all. I thank Google, whose representative attended and listened to the views of our colleagues from around the House.

I thank the Minister of State for her contribution today and thank all of my colleagues from the committee. I also thank Deputy O'Rourke for allowing me to go first. I have a constituency event so I really appreciate that. I have really enjoyed the work of the AI committee to date. I am a new TD and I am on three committees. I have to say, the AI committee has been the most divisive in a lot of ways. The polarised views of the Government and the Opposition on AI are so clear. There is a real emphasis on enterprise, innovation and competitiveness coming through from Government voices. From the Opposition, there are concerns around trust, risk, climate and what we see as many dangers presented by AI as it is rolled out in society. I name-checked that division not to emphasise it here in the Chamber but simply to say it was quite a pleasant surprise for me that we came together so well in compiling this report. We had a very productive and robust session to get through all of the amendments that were proposed to bring this report to completion. The model we are working on in bringing through modular reports which respond to the pace of AI and moving technology is exactly the way we should be dealing with this. I wanted to call that out immediately. I also call out the contribution of Senator Lynn Ruane, who I think put forward by far the majority of the amendments, probably about 70% of them, and put an awful lot of work into that. Obviously, she is not in the Chamber today so I wanted to make sure her work was recognised. One of the other things I have learned from being on this committee and on the culture, communications and sport committee is the cross-over between the two areas. I realise that AI as a topic is cropping up in many of the committees, such as the children and young people and education committees. Deputy Byrne and myself are both on those two committees and there have been some of the same witnesses in and some of the same topics debated about online safety, platforms and regulation. It is really important to mention this because there is still a perception that AI is distinct and is a technology that sits on its own. All of the issues we are dealing with in those online platforms are supercharged and turbocharged by the development of AI. Recommender algorithms are the problems they are because of AI. They have always been using AI and automated technology to prompt for us what we see on our screens. That is exactly what AI is doing. In the minds of many lawmakers and policymakers, there is perhaps still that distinction. What we are seeing, through the co-membership of these committees, is how integrated they are. I have certainly learned a lot through that. I will speak to a couple of the specific areas that have been touched on in the report and in the Minister of State's contribution and that of the committee Chair as well, starting with the AI office. This is something I have raised many times in the committee. I have concerns about the governance of the AI office and the location it currently has in the Department of enterprise. I raised this when the Minister of State was at the committee along with her officials. I emphasise that I am in no way trying to diminish the competence of her officials in calling out my concerns about the location of the AI office that currently sits in the Department of enterprise. It is quite the opposite. It is the job of the Department of enterprise's officials to promote industry, draw in investment and develop our economy through growth and trade. I do not believe that is where an office which is charged with the broader responsibility of the implementation of AI into society should sit. I also appreciate that, once the organisation is established, it will be then popped out and become independent. I have led an independent State agency, namely, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, which is governed by the UN principles and is arguably the most independent State agency in this country. I can tell the Minister of State that where the organisation is born will forever inform how it operates. I have real concerns that the origins of it should be outside of the Department of enterprise. I echo Deputy Byrne's comments and his idea about the elevation of the Minister of State's office out of the Department of enterprise and put into a more central Government Department, such as the Department of the Taoiseach or the Department of public expenditure. It should be in a more central and neutral Department where she would have the authority to oversee the regulation of AI in a way that of course looks at enterprise, growth and competitiveness but has that more balanced view that I think is required in the treatment of fundamental rights and protections which are at threat because of this technology. This can be seen in examples I do not think I have to go into any more because we have discussing them ad nauseam for the past number of weeks. This is emblematic of a business focus and I might go back to that division for a little bit. Although I see in this report and in the words the Government says and Government spokespeople say about there definitely being issues of concern, the fact that we need better regulation and how we can have innovation with regulation, the actions are not stacking up. This is evident even in what the Minister of State set out here today. We have talked about the establishment of the AI office as a regulatory response to the AI Act. It is a requirement of the AI Act and we know that. However, we if we look to the last section of the Minister of State's contribution, she was talking about observatories that are around enterprise, as well as a summit with the title of "enabling AI to power innovation-led growth in Europe". I want to see more balance in all of those areas. I want that summit to be more balanced. I also want it to talk about the dangers of AI and not wash over that and pretend that we can - because we cannot. This is my overall point. If we do not trust AI and if we do not build a governance and regulatory framework that builds that trust in AI within our citizens, AI will not reach its potential. It will not reach its potential within our economy, our public sector or anywhere else. I really want to see that kind of shift from Government representatives on that. One of the places it really needs to happen is in the simplification agenda because I hear again and again that simplification does not mean deregulation. However, the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, said to me simplification does not mean deregulation but it does mean relieving the regulatory burden. In response from Google at the committee just this week, I heard the response that simplification is about streamlining. I believe Mr. O'Flaherty told me there have been something like 100 different EU directives relating to technology, they are drowning in all of this regulation and it needs to be streamlined, simplified and harmonised. I do not doubt representatives of Government believe that is what happening but I am sorry, that is not what is happening. It is deregulation. If these tech companies are drowning in that much regulation, how has Grok happened? That is my simple question. How has Grok happened and how have we seen such a failure to deal with it? The reality still exists that, right now, people can access the nudification feature on Grok. Despite the Minister of State's own efforts and her incredibly strong messaging on this, despite the investigations that are ongoing by An Garda Síochána and despite the co-operation of Coimisiún na Mean and the Data Protection Commission, with the European Commission and with the UK inquiry into privacy and despite all of these investigations, inquiries and avenues to access justice, people can still do what they could do all along. You just need to download a simple VPN and you can access the nudification feature. Besides that, you can access those nudification features on platforms other than Grok and X. These problems persist despite what the Government and the industry are describing as an overburdensome regulatory framework. It just does not stack up for me. The simplification agenda has to be examined by the Minister of State and her Government. The issue of AI and technology is not the only place I am coming across it. My procurement Bill two weeks ago was knocked back on the same basis of simplification. That took eight years of work from Senator Alice-Mary Higgins. It came to the Dáil floor on Second Stage a couple of weeks ago. It was in this very slot, actually. On the same basis of simplification, the Minister of State's Government said "No". For me, that is something the Minister of State has to look at. I appreciate that is what is coming down the track from Europe but we do not have to conform to it as a State. We can seek to better regulate and better build standards for our citizens and say to Europe that we will actually do it this way and we will show it why that works better. The digital omnibus is the absolutely crucial part of it in this space. The digital omnibus promises to gut the AI Act. I know people push back at me and say it will not gut the AI Act. If you look into the detail of it, the digital omnibus is doing exactly that. Before the AI Act is even implemented on 2 August this year, the omnibus packages that are going through at the moment will absolutely shift it back to self-regulation and pull right back on protections we have enjoyed under GDPR. We need to preserve the artificial intelligence, AI, systems' registrations' requirements, safeguard powers of Article 77 fundamental rights bodies, maintain high-risk AI system timelines, protect GDPR personal data protections, maintain human oversight requirements, limit the collection of sensitive personal data, protect inferred sensitive data and prevent weakening of AI literacy requirements. I am more than happy to submit that list to the Minister of State. I have quite an expanded piece of research done on this, which I can share with the Minister of State and her officials, which demonstrates that these omnibus packages will pull back on protections and rights. It is not benign. It is not harmonisation. It is deregulation and it is a threat to our safety from these products. I thank the Minister of State and thank all my colleagues in the committee. I have really enjoyed being a part of this. I am very proud of the report that we are tabling here today.

I am pleased to be here today to respond to the First Interim Report of the Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence. I thank the Minister of State for being here. I thank the Cathaoirleach, Deputy Malcolm Byrne, and all the members of the committee and the secretariat and the witnesses who helped to shape and inform and prepare the report. It is a significant milestone. It represents a cross-party collaborative effort to understand not only the technicalities of AI, but its real-world impact on the people of Ireland, from our youngest citizens to our oldest and across every community, including those who are too often left out of the conversation. I welcome this report and commend its findings. It is a cross-party collaborative effort. In my comments, I will focus on three pillars that, I believe, are the foundation of a successful national AI strategy: governance, regulation and meaningful engagement. First, on governance, the report correctly identifies that the status quo is not an option. AI does not respect departmental silos and it cannot be managed by a piecemeal approach. The recommendation to establish the joint committee on a permanent basis is a wise one. This technology will be with us for decades and it demands sustained, dedicated oversight. I particularly welcome the call for an immediate co-ordinated all-of-Government approach led by a well-resourced national AI office. The committee has wisely stressed that this office must not be just another Government body. To be effective, it must have true independence and the technical expertise to navigate the complex conflicts that will inevitably arise between supporting industry, deploying AI in our own public services and enforcing robust regulations. I welcome the Minister of State's commitment in relation to the two observatories - the national skills observatory and the observatory for business AI readiness, OBAIR. I would be interested to hear more detail in relation to them and the division of labour. It is important that there is an analysis in terms of the impact of AI on jobs and on labour. There should be a particular focus on the impact of AI on youth unemployment, which is increasing at three times the rate of that in the general population. There is important work to be done there. The recommendation for a national AI risk register is a practical and necessary tool. We cannot mitigate risks we have not identified. We must know where the systemic dangers lie in our infrastructure, our labour market, as I say, and our social fabric before we can protect against them. We must support our regulators. The nine authorities tasked with safeguarding our fundamental rights under the EU AI Act cannot do this important work on a shoestring budget. If we ask them to protect citizens from AI-driven discrimination or harm, we must give them the human and financial resources to do so. Second, on regulation, the report sends a strong and welcome signal regarding the EU AI Act. The committee states unequivocally that Ireland must not shy away from the Act or try to dilute it. We should treat it as a minimum baseline, not a maximum standard. That is crucial. I share the concerns that Deputy Gibney raised. It is an issue we discussed at the committee after this report. The omnibus and the simplification agenda are important. I hear the arguments from the Government. It is that piece around striking the balance. We have to navigate it very careful. There will always be commercial pressure to put innovation before protection but this report recognises the wisdom we learned from GDPR. Good regulation does not stifle innovation. It frames it. It provides the guardrails that allow businesses to innovate safely and give citizens the confidence to trust and adopt new technologies. The emphasis on applying existing laws, such as GDPR and copyright law, to AI is also vital. We do not need to reinvent the wheel here. The right to access our data, the right to rectification and the right to erasure must apply whether a decision is made by a human or an algorithm, and I strongly agree that creators must be protected. Creator content should not be used to train commercial AI models without their consent and fair compensation. I am concerned, as the committee is, about the role of AI-driven recommender systems in pushing harmful and hateful content and I note the Minister of State's comments. The recommendation that these systems be switched off by default, especially for children, is a commonsense child-centred approach and I fully endorse it. We cannot allow profit-driven algorithms to undermine the mental health and safety of our young people. I commend the committee for placing engagement and inclusion at the heart of its work. In this block of work, we heard from a range of voices in relation to participation and the need for engagement. AI is not a force of nature. It is a tool. We have the power to shape it, but we can only shape it well if we listen to those who will be most affected by it. The report's call for a citizens' assembly on artificial intelligence and digitalisation is an important one. We need a national conversation. We need to move beyond the echo chambers of experts and bring this discussion into every living room in Ireland. The structured engagement with young people, older people and disabled people, not as an afterthought but as a core part of the committee's initial inquiry, set a powerful example in relation to this. Their testimony, detailed so clearly in this report, exposes the real world biases and barriers that already exist. We heard how AI can perpetuate discrimination against the Traveller community, for example, how it can isolate older people and how it risks making inaccessible public services even more out of reach for people with disabilities, but we also heard about the potential AI that can assist with independent living, support inclusive education and break down communication barriers. The recommendations, therefore, for equality by design, for involving marginalised groups from the very start of product development and for establishing advisory panels of young people, older people and disabled people within the national AI office are not just about being fair; they are about being effective and inclusive. A system designed by and for everyone will work better for everyone. The report tells us that we need strong independent governance, robust regulation and genuine public engagement. I thank everyone who contributed to the report.

I thank the Cathaoirleach Gníomhach and the Minister of State. I too acknowledge our Chair, Deputy Malcolm Byrne, and other colleagues on the joint Oireachtas AI committee. Before I continue, I will address some of the remarks made by Deputy Gibney because, while I believe they are sincerely held, I do not think they are a true, fair or accurate characterisation of the views of the members of the committee, whether in opposition or government. Deputy O'Rourke's contribution surmises that fact. In fairness, Deputy Gibney highlighted how we came together in the work of the committee which is somewhat contradictory to saying that there is a binary position between Government and Opposition. Ultimately, we are a mature democracy and I am proud of the fact that Ireland is a strong member of the European Union and we will have an opportunity to shape the AI Act. There was an effort to conflate the omnibus Bill, which is efforts in relation to innovation, and the protection against harm in the deployment of AI by mentioning Grok and everything related to it. The reality is that, when Coimisiún na Meán came before the joint Oireachtas AI committee last week, it supported the recommendation of the national AI council that we should expand the AI Act at an EU level to prohibit any system that could be deployed for the purposes of providing non-consensual adult images or child sex abuse material. I have to say it shocks me that this does not already form part of the legislation, but we are where we are, as they say. I am pleased that the Minister of State, in her speech today, has made clear that Ireland is also going to support this, along with other member states, and that this is something we can drive forward in the Presidency. That will be a great legacy. We can do this at the same time as showcasing an AI summit, which the Minister of State has highlighted. Again, this is an issue that came before our joint Oireachtas committee and there were early calls for it, including from me. The establishment of the joint Oireachtas AI committee last year marked an important moment. It was a recognition that technologies had the potential to reform our economy, our society and people's everyday lives. When I joined the committee, AI was something I saw almost incessantly in the media, a technology that would deliver either utopia or the apocalypse. Many commentators also argued that the wave of these new technologies would sweep aside economies, institutions and societies - the world as we know it - and that there was nothing states could do about it. I was sceptical of this narrative then and I still am now. The state will play a central role in the future of this technology and in how quickly it is developed, how widely it is adopted and how stringently it is regulated. Given that our leaders thought AI warranted an entire joint Oireachtas committee, I knew that preparing Ireland for this new future was being taken seriously at the highest levels of Government. That is why the work of the joint Oireachtas committee is so important, and why the publication of this first interim report is a good opportunity to reflect on where we are going. The report contains a number of recommendations. This evening's debate coincides well with the recently published national, digital and AI strategy, a strategy published by the Department of the Taoiseach, which is a roadmap of where Ireland is going. It contains 90 deliverables across a wide number of Departments and agencies. These involve the digitalisation and integration of AI into our public services, the adoption of Al across enterprise, our regulatory framework and preparing for the future of work. The committee’s report considers each of these areas, with a particular focus on regulation. Regulating AI is obviously essential and important for the committee to consider carefully, given our adoption of the EU’s Al Act, which adopts a risk-based and rights-centric approach that is an example for other legislatures to follow. The report focuses less on the impact that Al might have on enterprises and jobs across the country. That is why our broader enterprise and innovation environment, along with how Al might affect our labour market, are subjects I look forward to considering in more depth over the coming year on the committee. Our EU Presidency, of course, presents a unique chance for Ireland to lead on each of these three themes: regulation, innovation and the future of work at a European level. This is a chance the Government must grab with both hands. When it comes to regulation, with the Presidency fast approaching, it is clear that regulation of Al systems will be a central focus. As I mentioned, Coimisiún na Meán has already made recommendations regarding how we can expand the AI Act. However, there is more we can do. We can press for changes at the EU level during our Presidency. We should push for the EU to prohibit under the Al Act the deployment of Al systems for producing intimate imagery of real people without their consent or that might be used to produce child sex abuse material. As I said, it is surprising that this has not already been done. People on all sides of this House agree on the need to strongly regulate technologies that put our children and everyone else at risk, and will support the Government in its efforts. There is much we can do at a domestic level not only to protect people, but to see that the country as a whole benefits from the opportunities that these technologies present in the fields of medicine, financial services, energy, pharmaceuticals, and research and development. To realise the potential of these technologies, there are things beyond regulation we must consider. As regards the skills gap, the national Al and digital strategy contains several initiatives intended to equip our country for the new world of work. It commits to a roadmap for technology skills of the future, a new national skills observatory to monitor labour market dynamics, a one-stop-shop Al skilling platform and more. The most important thing here is that these initiatives be up and moving as quickly as possible. There is already progress being made in the Department of further and higher education in this respect and there is exciting work going on in many of our universities already. The new Al strategy will provide clarity to all relevant arms of the State on the direction of travel, and organise a whole-of-government approach to preparing our workforce for an uncertain future. Last year, over 1,000 jobs a week were created, a record 2.83 million people were at work in the fourth quarter of last year, and almost 1 million jobs have been created since 2011. In other words, we are in a better place than most countries, but the risks we face are significant. The Department of Finance’s most recent quarterly economic report highlighted those risks. It said that Ireland was particularly exposed to Al, given the high concentration of employment in knowledge-intensive sectors like ICT, financial services, and research and development. Faced with such uncertainty, it is the job of policymakers to prepare for multiple scenarios. The goal of the Al strategy is to equip all our people, young and old, with the skills required to manage these potential disruptions. Exploring how Al might reshape our labour market, impact the future prospects of our young people and the skills we need to equip our workers with will therefore be a crucial element of the joint Oireachtas committee’s work. This is intimately related to the final theme of my remarks, namely, the environment we need for our well-equipped workforce to participate in Al innovation, adoption and scaling. Skills are a necessary but not sufficient condition for Ireland’s economy to flourish in the new, digital future. The foundations of our enterprise model also need to change. Our highly skilled workforce and Irish companies need to confidently take the risk and access the capital required to take risks, innovate and scale. The good news is that we have introduced bold measures in the past that have attracted cutting-edge, high-value industries to Ireland. Changes to our corporation tax system, as well as initiatives to educate our population, led to technology and pharmaceutical companies locating in Ireland. The fruits of this are evident in the hundreds of thousands of people they employ. Google, for example, first employed only five people in Ireland when it set up operations here in 2003. It now employs over 5,000 people in Ireland. There are many examples just like this. Even now, OpenAl plans to double its headcount in Ireland. We are clearly at the races for attracting future investment. However, attracting FDI is only part of the equation. Given our base of talent, Al presents a real chance for new, Irish-led companies to emerge, scale and export. The need for indigenous companies to scale and grow in Ireland has been crystallised by the disruption of our global trading system over the past year. However, our track record in creating the right conditions for Irish start-ups and scale-ups has not been as strong as our record on FDI. Great work is being done to encourage the development of tech start-ups, with the likes of Dogpatch Labs and the Guinness Enterprise Centre, but our Stock Exchange has seen something of an exodus. To conclude, with strong and clear regulation, by urgently addressing our future skills need and by introducing the targeted reforms necessary for Irish start-ups to scale, there is a clear path forward. Ireland can be a model for how good regulation of Al is compatible with a dynamic environment for businesses and workers. The joint Oireachtas Al committee will play an important role in scrutinising the Government’s progress in each of these areas, and I look forward to playing my role in that process.

I thank each and every Deputy for their measured, considered contributions. We are all striving and working towards the same thing. I might specify two particular issues that have been raised overall. On simplification, I know how Deputy Gibney in particular feels, but we all feel passionate about it. The idea of simplification does not in any way diminish our protection of citizens and our fundamental rights. That is absolutely clear. The Deputy is right, in that I am coming from the perspective of being in the Department of enterprise. We are all agreed that, for many years, businesses have felt stifled by bureaucracy and over-regulation. There is no doubt about that, but we cannot just lumber it all in together. I want to thank my officials, including Mr. Declan McCormack, who is here with me and has been through every debate to advise and assure me, as well as to take the views the Deputies make so that those are fed into the regulation of the AI office. The fundamental rights and the protection of our citizens is going to be at the heart of everything we do. That is very important. With regard to the simplification piece and the digital omnibus, Ireland will be pushing to ensure that it does not mean deregulation or the exposure of fundamental rights for our citizens. There is one other piece. Nine national authorities have been identified as the formal bodies for the protection of fundamental rights under the AI Act. These authorities have a central role in the implementation of the AI regulation in Ireland and Europe. My Department is engaging with these authorities and will continue to ensure that there is balance, and that innovation and creativity among our businesses is allowed to flourish and that they are not killed by bureaucracy, which we know has been a problem, and at the same time we are looking at and protecting the fundamental rights of our citizens. I just wanted to outline that from the outset. I thank the chair of the committee, Deputy Malcolm Byrne, and all colleagues for speaking today, and for the publication of this report. I welcome this constructive contribution and discussion on our approach to AI. It is clear that no one entity can navigate the complexities of AI alone. This debate is very timely with the publication last week of the national digital and AI strategy. Digital Ireland sets out a clear road map for Ireland's digital and AI adoption and development in the years ahead. As mentioned, it takes a whole-of-government approach, building on Ireland's strengths in digital skills, enterprise, infrastructure and the transformation of public services. It has to be acknowledged that the Department of the Taoiseach has taken a central piece and a central role in collaborating on the national AI and digital strategy, but my colleagues right across Government have a role too, including the Minister, Deputy Jack Chambers, who has responsibility for AI and the guidelines around public services. The Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Deputy James Lawless, also has a specific role and a focus on AI. There are many different elements and many different Departments within government. It is not a silo we are working in. It has that broad approach and every single Minister within this Government is very conscious of the impact of AI in all of our Departments, and that is exactly how it should be. A central element of the strategy is to champion AI as a transformative strategic technology, reinforcing our ambition to maximise its economic and societal impact. There is a strong alignment between elements of the strategy and several of the committee's recommendations. I think we are all united in our shared aim of ensuring that everyone in society is equipped and empowered to thrive in this digital era. Delivering on the strategy requires strong leadership. Implementation will be driven from the centre of Government by the Department of the Taoiseach, working with all relevant Departments, and overseen by the Cabinet committee on economy, trade and competitiveness. Progress will be monitored via the senior officials' group on digital and AI issues, with progress reports published annually. Regular stakeholder engagements will be a key element in ensuring successful, responsive and agile implementation. The Oireachtas Joint Committee on AI's report emphasises the need for engagement and input from civil society. I take on board too the recommendation and the thought process on a civic open discussion around this debate. That is a really good idea. The Government recognises the importance of ensuring that Ireland's approach to AI serves the needs of all parts of society. Digital Ireland renews the Government's commitment to inclusion and accessibility to ensure that no one is left behind in this digital and AI revolution. Our wider national governance framework for AI, including implementation of the EU AI Act, is designed to promote fairness, transparency and strong protections for health, safety and fundamental rights, while supporting the development of a human-centered, trustworthy AI. Apologies Chair, I obviously waffled too long. Could I conclude?

We are not under pressure for time.

I thank the Acting Chair. If I could be given a little bit of latitude to conclude.

Yes.

In November 2024 the Government designated a list of national public bodies that protect fundamental rights. We need to just keep that in our minds. These are nine national bodies to protect fundamental rights, including the right to non-discrimination in relation to certain high-risk uses of AI systems specific to the AI Act. In addition, once established the national AI office of Ireland will engage and consult with a broad range of stakeholders across civic society, including the representative bodies most affected by AI systems. Deputy Gibney made the point about having the balance. That is critically important. It was alluded to in opening comments that we have a shared focus on getting the balance right and that it is not just about innovation. It is about our citizens as well. Taken together these measures provide Ireland with a structured, expert, informed and citizen-focused system on our approach to artificial intelligence policies and ethics. I also want to assure Members of the independence of the new AI office. While Deputy Gibney has a concern about it coming from the Department of enterprise, as was quite rightly said, when that new CEO is appointed that is where it will be led from and that will show us the pathway for where AI will be in a much broader sense. While it is established by the Department of enterprise I think that any anybody coming in who gets that position will have to ensure they have that much broader view of the world when we are talking about AI. I also want to assure Members of the independence of the AI office. The general scheme of the regulation of artificial intelligence Bill 2026 was approved for priority drafting at the Government meeting on 13 January 2026. The guiding principles are that the AI office of Ireland must be independent in structure in order to oversee the governance and co-ordination of the national roll out and ongoing supervision and enforcement of the EU AI Act, ensuring that all relevant authorities and stakeholders are aligned with its interpretation and the application of the regulations. A separate issue, which I know is on people's minds, is the potential impact of job displacement. AI is a disruptive technology and I completely understand concerns regarding the impact of AI on the labour market. While AI will undoubtedly create new opportunities it also carries risks of job displacement. Recent research from the expert group on future skills needs reports that Ireland's enterprise sector and workforce are adapting rapidly to AI, with strong demand for AI skills matched by solid supply. While the report finds that AI is likely to augment many existing roles it also notes that the overall impact on employment levels is less clearcut and that continued monitoring is essential. What is clear is that the structure of work will continue to change and new types of jobs will emerge. Digital Ireland outlines actions to support workers to navigate and mitigate the impacts of potential job displacement, including through agile, responsive and accessible skills' supports. The new national skills observatory and the observatory for business AI readiness will play an important role in shaping future enterprises and employment policies, as well as directing targeted investment in upskilling and reskilling, ensuring that our workforce is supported and ready to adapt as these roles evolve. Finally, I want to emphasise that while artificial intelligence should drive innovation it must also be fair, inclusive and trustworthy. This is why when implementing our new strategy the Government will work hand in hand with businesses, experts and most importantly our citizens. Our ambition is straightforward, which is to create a country where AI and digital innovation genuinely improve people's lives and contribute to a fair, resilient and future-focused economy and society. I thank the Acting Chair for her latitude.

My apologies. The clock was wrong. The Minister of State had ten minutes. I apologise for that. The final speaker will be Deputy Malcolm Byrne.

This has been a very informative debate. It reflects the nature of how our committee has worked. If we think about our role as legislators, our responsibility is towards the safety of our citizens and those who live here. It is about equipping people to be able to deal with the challenges that we face in our lives and in our workplaces. It is about supporting innovation and creating an environment where jobs and wealth can be created. It is about ensuring that we deliver public services in as effective and efficient a way as possible, that it is targeted at those who need supports, and that it allows for us to have a better society in which to live. Artificial intelligence cuts across all of those. It is the most transformative technology. As the Minister of State and colleagues have said, it is about getting that balance right between regulation and innovation. Deputy Geoghegan spoke about Ireland being a mature democracy. I often reflect on this. When we come into this Chamber on some of the big set-piece days there is a lot of theatre that goes on. The media become obsessed about the disagreements and the arguments. I have to say that I have learned so much at this committee. I felt we worked in a really collaborative way. People took off their party hats. I learned from colleagues as well and I thank James, Darren and Sinéad, and all the members of the committee for their views. There were disagreements on issues. I found that our views have changed. Sometimes we might not necessarily get the answers, but we suddenly start to think of the questions that we need to ask. In a mature democracy, it is critical that parliamentary committees operate in that way. The outcome of that, because we were able to work together, is we have come up with those 85 recommendations. They chime with a lot of what has gone into the strategy. As we move through other modules, I look forward to be able to further impact on Government policy. We are continuing to deal with AI in the State. We will be moving on soon to explore issues like AI and justice, AI and the creative industries, which I know the Minister of State is very passionate about, AI and energy and AI and education. We are learning from people right across these Houses, and from civic society organisations, business, and academic experts. We are very keen to hear their views. People can email ai@oireachtas.ie. That is an open call for e-mails. We should not underestimate the scale of the changes that are happening. Every new technology is often overhyped in the short term, but it tends to be underestimated in the medium to long term. AI is having a profound impact. I am really grateful to colleagues. We are committed to continuing to work together to explore all of those issues and to working closely with the Minister of State and the Government to deliver the best for our citizens and those who reside here. Our committee has an awful lot more work to do. We have requested that it be put on a permanent footing. I am sure the Minister of State will support us in that regard. Debates like this are critical, but it is important that the debate is not just within this House. We need more debates in the media, business organisations, trades unions and civic society about how we deal with the threats and the challenges, but also about how Ireland can position itself to ensure that we benefit from the potential of this truly transformative technology.