Parliamentary questions

323. Deputy Noel McCarthy asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport when he expects the application process for the Community Sports Facilities Fund to open and the scheme details to be published; the minimum contribution required by applicants towards total project costs; the projected theme for this funding round; if two separate capital projects for the same club can be accommoda…

324. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he will provide an update on funding that was previously allocated for a swimming pool in Loughrea, County Galway under the local authority swimming pool programme; if that funding is still available for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31633/26]

325. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport to consider legislating to mandate that social media platforms must provide access to a child friendly complaints function; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31659/26]

326. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether full-time employees of statutory regulators such as ComReg are considered to be civil servants either as a matter of law or for the purposes of national wage agreements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32175/26]

141. Deputy Aidan Farrelly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the number of WTE qualified legal advisors working within his Department. [31035/26]

142. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he has spoken, or plans to speak, with the Arts Council to ascertain whether or not recipients of core funding for strategic funding are required, as a condition of such funding, to demonstrate compliance with employment law and correct worker classification; whether or not his Department or the Arts Council …

143. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he has spoken, or plans to speak, with the Arts Council to ascertain whether or not recipients of core funding for strategic funding are required, as a condition of such funding, to demonstrate compliance with the guidance issued by the Revenue Commissioners regarding the correct classification of employees a…

144. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether funding is available for a club to aid with mini leagues costs and logistics (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31173/26]

145. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the position regarding the mechanisms in place to support agencies under his remit with the increased costs of employing staff; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31356/26]

146. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the position regarding the mechanisms in place to support agencies under his remit to manage the increase in the minimum wages in recent years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31374/26]

147. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the position regarding the mechanisms in place to support agencies under his remit to manage increasing operating costs including insurance, energy and fuel; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31392/26]

148. Deputy Liam Quaide asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether he is aware of a funding gap whereby curriculum-based theatre productions are not eligible for support from the Arts Council, while also falling outside the remit of the Department of Education & Youth; if his Department has considered introducing a dedicated funding stream or pilot initiative to support p…

149. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport his views on the merits of introducing a levy to revenues generated by social media companies in Ireland with a view to funding effective and extensive regulation of those; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31481/26]

642. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he is aware of the delay in the implementation of a reported 2% increase in Eir pensions, which was agreed approximately 12 months ago; whether there are any updates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30055/26]

643. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport for clarification regarding a club’s Community Sport Facilities Fund application (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29895/26]

644. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport to respond to concerns raised about the basic income for the arts (BIA) scheme 2026-2029 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29897/26]

645. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport to allow for a person (details supplied) to make a change to their application for the basic income for artists in light of the criteria being changed after the applicant had made their application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30018/26]

646. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the documentation that is required to apply for the basic income for the arts scheme to prove that people are artists; if proof of being an artist must be validated through the third party (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30027/26]

647. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport for clarification regarding the basic income for the arts (BIA) scheme 2026-2029, given that these revised requirements may invalidate applications submitted earlier by artists who applied in good faith (details supplied) before such changes were introduced; if he will provide a mechanism to allow affected appli…

648. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the precise legal basis upon which the proposed age-verification pilot for social media platforms will operate; whether it has any statutory underpinning in Irish law given that it has been operating as a pilot (basing itself on MyGovID) without legislative basis since its inception; whether the Data Protection Commis…

649. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether a data protection impact assessment has been completed prior to the development of the proposed “new digital wallet” social media age-verification scheme; whether the scheme, as designed, would require every person over the age of 16 wishing to post on social media to present a government-issued digital ID; wh…

650. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether he has sought and received legal advice on the compatibility of the proposed digital wallet social media verification scheme with Article 8 (right to privacy) and Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights, and with Article 40.6.1 of Bunreacht na hÉireann; whether the scheme,…

651. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether the Government has considered alternative and less privacy-invasive measures for protecting children online, including the mandatory disabling of social media algorithms by default, the commencement of Section 30 of the Data Protection Act 2018 which has never been brought into force and would prohibit the tar…

652. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he will provide a full account of the data architecture of the proposed “digital wallet” social media verification scheme; specifically, whether social media platforms will receive or retain any data from a user’s government identity; whether An Garda Síochána or any other State body will have the legal power to ac…

653. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport whether he is aware of the joint statement issued in December 2025 by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and an organisation (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30142/26]