5. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he will report on the impact of the expansion of data centres on the State’s climate change targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17991/25]
Topics / Data Centres
A subject heading for parliamentary questionsData Centres
172 questions from 36 TDs, between 13 February 2025 and 22 October 2026.
172
questions
158 written, 14 oral
36
TDs have asked
9
parties and groups
Independents counted together
6
departments asked
Questions per month
The record holds no questions for August, when the Dáil does not sit.
Jan 2025Oct 2026
Show as a table
| Month | Questions |
|---|---|
| January 2025 | 0 |
| February 2025 | 8 |
| March 2025 | 9 |
| April 2025 | 6 |
| May 2025 | 6 |
| June 2025 | 2 |
| July 2025 | 2 |
| August 2025 | 0 |
| September 2025 | 5 |
| October 2025 | 0 |
| November 2025 | 9 |
| December 2025 | 26 |
| January 2026 | 10 |
| February 2026 | 3 |
| March 2026 | 12 |
| April 2026 | 10 |
| May 2026 | 5 |
| June 2026 | 27 |
| July 2026 | 7 |
| August 2026 | 0 |
| September 2026 | 15 |
| October 2026 | 10 |
Who asks, by party
The party each TD belonged to on the day, in alphabetical order. Parties differ a lot in size, and members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them, so this shows who raised it, not how much a party cares about it.
The TDs who asked most
Members of the Government answer questions rather than ask them. Each question counts once.
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39
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25
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21
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9
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9
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8
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8
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7
Asked of
Debated under the same heading
Debates whose official heading is exactly these words.
The questions
9. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his views on the role of data centres and capacity payments in pushing up the cost of energy for households and privatising the energy system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17930/25]
36. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the measures he and his Department are planning to enhance data centres' use of renewable energy sources and energy efficient technology; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18045/25]
64. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he will provide an update on any district heating projects connected with data centres having either being rolled out or being rolled out nationwide; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17838/25]
260. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications to provide an update on which information about data centres will be made publicly available pursuant to Article 12(1) of the recast Energy Efficiency Directive, and which information he will allow the data centres to keep concealed as commercially sensitive. [15776/25]
15. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he, or his predecessor, discussed the construction of data centres with a company (details supplied); and if so, to provide details of this discussion regarding planning, locations of potential data centres, and state funding or subsidies. [14292/25]
308. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his Department plans to carry out an analysis on the economic and local and community impact of data centres in rural areas; if the type and condition of land used for these developments and their potential impact on the agri-food industry will be assessed by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13362/25]
139. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if there are plans to review, revise or update the Government Statement on the Role of Data Centres in Ireland’s Enterprise Strategy dated July 2022, and in particular in the area of ‘islanded’ data centre developments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10573/25]
498. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to provide an update on the status of a national data centre policy; whether the Government is in the process of drafting it; when it is likely to be completed; and what the arrangements are for public consultation. [10844/25]
960. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage about the impact of water consumption by data centres on water supply; his views on the impact of this consumption on water supply during periods when Uisce Éireann is encouraging water conservation; and if he will publish, or request Uisce Éireann to publish, the volume of water consumption by data processing centres, by local aut…
182. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he has engaged with stakeholders in relation to the situation whereby grid constraints from the excessive data centre demand are negatively impacting the connection of housing to the electricity network. [10348/25]
5. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he will engage with colleagues and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities to review and potentially revise the existing policy framework to ensure that any future data centre developments provide clear and proportional benefits to the country. [9927/25]
61. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether the current approach to data centre development is delivering sufficient benefits to justify the costs given the significant environmental impact of data centres, their relatively low contribution to local and national employment compared to other forms of investment, and their role in reinforcing Ireland’s relia…
199. Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his views on the Commission for Regulation of Utilities’ (CRU) assertion that the provisions of section 15 of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 are insufficient to enable it to mandate explicit emissions reduction and offsetting measures for data centres; whether the decision to allow data centres to be po…
61. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if his attention has been drawn to the situation whereby grid constraints from the excessive data centre demand are negatively impacting the connection of housing to the electricity network. [8350/25]
62. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he plans to bring forward legislation to ban connections of islanded data centres to the gas grid. [8352/25]
195. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications in light of the substantial pressure that data centres are placing on grid systems, and given that they are the largest driver of energy demand in the State, if he is considering any plans to direct the Regulator to increase the network charge of large energy users in order to finance repairs and ensure households do not bear …
218. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications given that there is an all-Ireland energy market, if there has been any discussion between Derry City and Strabane Council, or the Department of Infrastructure in the north of Ireland and the ESB or his Department in this jurisdiction on the demand on electricity by the proposed four new data centres in the Derry area; if the…
221. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications how much data centre demand is currently contracted to connect to the electricity networks operated by ESB Networks and Eirgrid above what is already connected. [8104/25]
102. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the measures he is taking to ensure that the roll out of data centres is consistent with the Climate act 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6769/25]
138. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the measures he is taking to ensure that data centres are regulated, ensuring that they are aligned with our climate goals. [5494/25]
106. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform the amount spent on the Shared Government Data Centre to date; the amount needed to complete the project; when the project is expected to be completed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4824/25]