Questions

984. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the status of the research his Department is carrying out to assess to economic impact of data centres in Ireland; when this research was originally commissioned; to report on any insights garnered to date; if any of the research was presented to the CRU as part of their process of updating Ireland’s large energy user connection policy; if …

985. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the reason companies (details supplied) have not been fined for facilitating the sale of tickets above face value; the reason this company is able to operate in the Irish market; the way in which he plans to tackle the frequent scalping of tickets that continues despite legislation outlawing it; and if he will make a statement on the m…

986. Deputy Marie Sherlock asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment his plans for a policy of leave for those who experience early pregnancy loss (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1388/26]

987. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the use of AI systems to generate explicit deepfakes of real, identifiable people without their consent; if he considers this practice unlawful, the plans to prevent such content spreading online; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1448/26]

988. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the action the Government is taking to ensure that social media companies are taking action to detect, remove and mitigate the spread of harmful and illegal material, including content involving minors or non-consensual imagery; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1449/26]

989. Deputy Maeve O'Connell asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his Department has investigated vet practice competition and pricing to assess if it is a competitive market. [1607/26]

990. Deputy Maeve O'Connell asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his Department will require pricing for the top ten veterinary procedures to be published and publicly available to consumers; and where "pet plans" available prices will be included with and without said "pet plan" to enable transparency. [1608/26]

991. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the date on which a supplementary estimate or supplementary estimates was sought in respect of his Department’s Vote for each of the past ten years, and to the date in 2026; the gross and net amount involved in each case; and the Vote subheads to which each supplementary estimate related. [1791/26]

992. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the value of expenditure originally allocated in the Estimates to specific programmes or staffing measures that could not be spent as planned within the year for each of the past five years; and whether such underspends were surrendered, carried forward, or reallocated to other areas within the Vote. [1812/26]

993. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the way in which the signing of the National Charter for Digital Inclusion by a company (details supplied) will translate into practical digital-skills supports for SMEs and workers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1843/26]

994. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the way in which the additional €23 million for Ireland’s European digital innovation hubs will expand AI, cybersecurity and wider digital-adoption supports for SMEs and public bodies during phase 2; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1844/26]

995. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if additional financial support will be made available to local authorities and community groups to develop enterprise centres or work spaces (details supplied); if his Department and the statutory agencies under the remit of his Department will give this request further urgent consideration in view of longstanding commitments to addr…

996. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the additional supports being considered for small and medium-sized enterprises in rural towns such as Abbeyleix, Mountmellick, Mountrath and Portarlington, particularly in light of rising operational costs and recruitment challenges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1867/26]

997. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the number of IDA and Enterprise Ireland client visits to County Laois in the past 12 months; the progress on securing new investment for the National Enterprise Park in Portlaoise; the strategy for increasing foreign direct investment in the Midlands; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1868/26]

998. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the supports available to tourism-related enterprises in County Laois, including those connected to heritage, outdoor recreation and hospitality; if additional measures are planned to strengthen the county’s tourism economy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1870/26]

999. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his Department has assessed the potential of stronger remote working legislation to retain graduates and skilled workers in counties such as Laois; if this forms part of the Government’s regional enterprise strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1871/26]

1000. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the measures being taken to address rising business costs in the midlands region, particularly labour, energy, and water costs; if specific supports will be introduced to safeguard competitiveness for local enterprises; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1872/26]

1001. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the way in which his Department is supporting local authorities and tourism agencies in developing infrastructure to host major cultural and sporting events, including facilities upgrades, accommodation expansion and accessibility improvements; if he will outline the midlands' preparedness for upcoming international events in 2026 and…

1002. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his Department will examine the financial burden on businesses and non-EEA employees associated with the €1,500 cost of renewing a general employment permit after the initial two-year period; if consideration will be given to reducing or restructuring these fees to ensure that the cost is not disproportionately placed on either i…

1003. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if he will abolish the exemption of apprentices from the national minimum wage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67678/25]

1004. Deputy Joe Neville asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the way in which his Department plans to target Irish tourism overseas in its capital investment strategy under the National Development Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1888/26]

1005. Deputy Joe Neville asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his Department plans to continue to support Irish SMEs with the introduction of improved AI and other cutting edge digital technologies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1889/26]

1006. Deputy Cathy Bennett asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if he could provide a breakdown of his Department’s €4.7 billion capital investment strategy, ‘Start Up Ireland’, for the next five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1905/26]

1007. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the current average waiting time for a WRC adjudication hearing to be heard from the time the complaints are submitted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1912/26]

1008. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the average waiting time for a WRC adjudication hearing to be heard from the time the complaints are submitted for each month in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1913/26]