Charlie McConalogue
Donegal · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“There are indications that the opt-out mechanism for the text and data mining exception is not working well in practice. Evidence gathered by the Danish Presidency showed that some activity is taking place on the licensing of works for AI, but that it is uneven across member states and subsectors of the creative sector.”
“The proposal involved the development of grass pitches, an Astroturf facility, flood-lighting and dressing rooms. The Football Association of Ireland wrote to my Department in 2023 stating that it no longer intended to proceed with the LSSIF-funded centre of excellence in Glanmire.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The programme for Government commits to maintaining sports funding to get more people participating in all levels of sport, particularly targeting cohorts in society where there are lower than average participation levels.”
“This is Ireland's first national strategy for diabetes and it sets out recommendations for action in relation to type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, diabetes in pregnancy and paediatric diabetes. The strategy marks a major milestone in diabetes care in Ireland and represents the development of a unified approach to its delivery.”
“It is anticipated that the final business case will be submitted shortly to my Department. In relation to the site in Glanmire, my Department has been informed that the property has now been leased to Riverstown Football Club by Cork County Council.”
“The structure of that payment, which was agreed between An Post and the postmasters, is designed to maintain and strengthen our post office network and to keep it sustainable, taking into account the number of post offices in an area, the distance to the next nearest post office and the rural nature versus the population base that it migh…”
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“Again I share concern regarding the really difficult situation these residents find themselves in, and recognise the importance of everyone within the State and all of our agencies working to support them through this difficult period.”
“Fingal County Council will be liaising closely with them along with the Department of housing, and its response today makes it clear that from a funding point of view it stands ready to work with Fingal County Council and other agencies in relation to trying to support residents and work through this particular challenging situation. The questions the Deputy has raised are very pertinent for residents in relation to the obligations from the owners of the apartments to them. On the legal questions he posed in relation to what those obligations are, I will ask the Department to revert directly to him with those answers.”
“There are many prevention initiatives already under way in the Department and across Government, and this includes the provision of social affordable housing, housing assistance payments, HAP, and homeless HAP, and our strong tenancy protection legislation. Increased supply is key to addressing homelessness and the Government is investing significantly in that aspect. I know Deputy O'Gorman’s particular question is in relation to the need for urgent support for the residents of the Auburn Park apartments and the very distressing situation they find themselves in.”
“This includes more than €513 million in current funding to ensure local authorities can provide emergency accommodation, homelessness prevention and tenancy sustainment services to households experiencing or at risk of homelessness and that these households in emergency accommodation are supported to exit homelessness as quickly as possible. The focus is on ensuring rapid access to emergency accommodation, followed by wrap-around supports and pathways back into secure housing. Supporting individuals and families facing homelessness is a key priority for both the Minister and the Government and prevention of homelessness in the first instance is an absolute priority.”
“I assure the Deputy on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Browne and the Department of housing that they will continue to support Fingal County Council with the funding necessary to ensure that residents of Auburn Park are supported in accessing housing assistance where appropriate in the weeks ahead. This year, more than €563 million has been allocated to homeless services, ensuring that local authorities such as Fingal County Council have the resources required to respond rapidly to situations like this.”
“The role of the Department of housing is to ensure a framework of policy, legislation and funding is provided to ensure housing authorities are in a position to address homelessness at a local level. Statutory responsibility for the provision and co-ordination of emergency accommodation rests with the local authorities and in this instance it is the responsibility of Fingal County Council to assess individual needs and deliver supports on the ground, including housing needs assessments, the provision of emergency accommodation and any homelessness supports required for residents affected. The local authority will work with other agencies such as the Dublin Fire Brigade, the Department of Social Protection, the HSE and approved housing bodies, where appropriate, to ensure all necessary supports are put in place.”
“I thank Deputy O'Gorman for raising this issue. I join with him in recognising the distress the tenants are experiencing as a result of this very traumatic event, and also recognise his advocacy on their behalf, as well as the very stressful situation they remain in as a result of no longer being in their apartments. I am taking this on behalf of the Minister for housing and the Department of housing. The Deputy raised a number of very pertinent and urgent questions in his contribution and I certainly will ask the Department to revert directly to him to have them answered. The Minister was also concerned to learn of the fire at the Auburn Park apartments last week, and likewise he very much appreciates the distress experienced by the residents and the families affected by the fire.”
“I agree with the Deputy that our objective has to be how we protect workers during the transition. Obviously, AI has massive potential to be of benefit, but it has to be something that we ensure we harness for the good of wider society in a way that improves people's quality of life. To achieve that, we have to make sure that employment is maintained, that people have jobs to go to and that AI adds to productivity and the good things we, as a society, experience . Crucial to that is that jobs are protected in the process. The Deputy's policy proposal very much aims to address that. I will relay the points he made to the Minister.”
“The approach Deputy Ó Cearúil is taking goes to the nub of where we need be in order to try to address this challenge. Certainly, he has been doing a lot of work on this with the officials, the Minister, Deputy Lawless, and the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth. I will engage with them in relation to this debate and on the importance of working with the Deputy on the policy proposal he has put forward. I again acknowledge the Deputy's advocacy and leadership within the political system with regard to the importance of addressing this matter and putting forward tangible proposals as to how that can be achieved. It is very important from a Government perspective that our Departments engage with him to take that on board and, collectively, to try to address something that is evolving rapidly.”
“I acknowledge the relevance of the proposal and policy approach the Deputy has put forward. The Government has to focus on seeing how we can ensure workers are retained within companies. That is absolutely the Deputy's focus. The Government obviously takes the need to retrain and reskill people seriously. I have already outlined on behalf of the Minister for further and higher education the different steps being taken, whether it is the roadmap for technology skills for the future, the statement of ambition on digital and AI skills, the AI micro-qualifications developed by SOLAS or the online platform AI Ready, which is focused on trying to make sure the skills and retraining is provided from Government and all our agencies.”
“These are complemented by the work of Skillnet Ireland, which continues to deliver enterprise-led upskilling opportunities that are aligned with industry needs.”
“The observatory will have several functions, including monitoring labour market trends and emerging skills needs, which will support Ireland's responsiveness to education and training systems. Regarding recent developments, last month saw the launch of the AI Ready platform. The latter will support early inclusive skills development, an approach strongly reinforced by ESRI and Central Bank research on Al, skills and labour market disruption. SOLAS and the educational training boards, ETBs, have developed short flexible courses, including micro-qualifications focused on Al awareness, applied skills and career transition opportunities. Higher education institutions continue to deliver a wide range of specialist and foundational digital skills programmes, including micro-credentials, through initiatives such as Springboard+.”
“The Government recently held its first national skills round table, marking the beginning of a national programme of high-level engagements focused on ensuring Ireland has the right skills for a rapidly changing economy. This will include a series of sector-specific meetings with employers and industry representative bodies to gain deeper insight into priority skills needs. Officials within the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science are currently developing a statement of ambition, which will focus on digital skills including Al skills, and a roadmap for technology skills for the future, which will be the successor to Technology Skills 2022. The Department is also developing a national skills observatory. It is intended to have the observatory in place by year end.”
“The latter is the national digital and Al strategy. It sets an ambition for Ireland to be a global hub for applied Al innovation. It also renews the Government's commitments to inclusion and accessibility to ensure that no one is left behind in this digital and Al revolution. Research published by the Departments of Finance and Enterprise, Tourism and Employment shows that Ireland is relatively more exposed than other advanced economies. In line with this finding, Digital Ireland seeks to support workers to navigate and mitigate the impacts of potential job displacement, including through agile, responsive and accessible skills supports.”
“As the Deputy will know, in the first instance, the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is the appropriate lead for issues of skilling, reskilling and upskilling of the workforce to navigate the impacts of potential job displacement due to the adoption of Al technologies. I am taking this matter on his behalf this morning,. I know the Deputy has been liaising closely with him and his officials on this issue and on his policy proposal. The digitalisation of the economy and society and the adoption of AI are among the largest structural forces shaping our country. The Government is committed to driving our digital agenda and to Ireland remaining a digital leader at the heart of Europe and globally. Accordingly, Digital Ireland was published on 18 February.”
“I thank Deputy Ó Cearúil for raising this very important issue. I recognise his strong work on it and on developing a national AI workplace transition programme and leading out on it in the context of meeting with employers, unions and the relevant Ministers. The Deputy's work within the political system has been pioneering in relation to this matter. It is appropriate that we are discussing it here in the Dáil this morning. This is something that will have to take up much more Government and Oireachtas time in the period ahead in the context of ensuring that we respond to this challenge and that we are at the forefront when it comes to making sure it is used positively and to the benefit of the public. We must also ensure that our policies reflect an approach that harnesses AI in this way.”
“How far we take that is a question that has to be given strong consideration in terms of what is appropriate and what is not, bearing in mind the independence of sporting organisations, what access to games serves the public well and the capacity of independent sporting organisations to conduct their commercial and financial affairs.”
“This would be a good issue for the committee to explore and something the Senator, working with the committee, would be able to do. We do not have any plans to extend the reach of Government in relation to deciding what games should and should not be on TV. We all want to see as many games as possible. We have many more now than we did a few years ago. It is challenging when a game like this, that is so looked forward to, is not shown on television. It would be a worthwhile conversation to have in relation to examining the GAA's position on this. If the committee has any proposals it wants the Government to consider, it can submit them. Ultimately, it is about what is proportionate for the Government to be involved in and what is not. We have capacity in the State to designate certain games free to air. We have done that for Gaelic games.”
“It is unfortunate that we both will not be seeing it free-to-air on this occasion. I would have liked that to be the case, but this is ultimately a call for the GAA and that is appropriate. For the State to intervene in a way that makes directions as to what games are and are not shown outside of the big showcases and finals over the course of the year would be a step too far.”
“We all agree it is important that the GAA considers everything in the round and tries to make as much available free-to-air as possible but retains the capacity, as every organisation must do, to decide what games should be on television. Obviously, not every game is on TV. In the past number of years, with online streaming, many more are available through channels that would not have been there before, and they would not have been available at all previously. There is great anticipation for the game this weekend. I am looking forward to it, following on from the great contest we had in the national league final. I hope Donegal can repeat that on this occasion and are fresh from the past three or four weeks, although I am sure Kerry will be lying in wait and have other ideas. That should mean it is a great event.”
“That is something we are proud to do because it provides great value in terms of the return the public gets for the wonderful opportunity to engage in sport in their local communities. I was glad that with the Minister, Deputy O'Donovan, and the Minister for public expenditure, Deputy Chambers, we secured €750,000 for the GAA in the most recent budget to develop the game of hurling across the country. That is something we look to build on and continue to support in upcoming budgets as well. We do not have any plans to designate more events as statutorily free-to-air. There are limits on how far we can go on that.”
“However, it is not intended to designate an entire competition or all of one sport's events, as I know many sports fans might want. If we had a free hand and I had a free hand and was not looking to be proportionate I would like to designate all Donegal games as free-to-air. I am sure the Senator would like to do the same with Kerry, but we have to be proportionate about where the State intervenes and where it does not in that regard. Other than those events designated for broadcast as free-to-air, the question of which sporting events are broadcast and how is primarily a matter for the sports body concerned. Where and how the matches are shown is not a matter for Government. The Senator mentioned the Government commitment to funding the GAA and other sporting organisations.”
“There is also a balance for the Government with regard to how much we intervene in directing what should and must be available and designated free-to-air. There are a significant number of games available free-to-air on public service broadcasters. It is important to point out that a number of Gaelic games are designated for free-to-air coverage and will not go behind a paywall. These include the All-Ireland senior inter-county football, hurling and camogie finals. The designation of major events, including sports events, is a statutory process to ensure that certain events, not just sporting events, which are of significant cultural and societal importance to Irish audiences remain available for free-to-air viewing.”
“We all understand the desire of sports fans to see as many matches as possible shown on television, especially those involving their own counties. We have come a long way from the days when the great Mícheál Ó hEithir was broadcasting on television and people were gathering around one TV set to watch. That has grown to a situation where we have seen a significant increase in the number of GAA and sports games shown on television, even over the past ten or 20 years or more. As I was growing up, there were not nearly as many games shown on TV across any sport, particularly GAA, as there are today. That has generally led to an accessible situation in how people access their games, but there is a challenge for organisations as to how they balance that in the context of how much is free-to-air.”
“I thank the Senator for raising this. He is bringing the capacity to advocate on behalf of his county on a sporting matter into the Oireachtas in the same way I know that he and many of his family have done on the football field in Kerry. This is an important matter and something of great interest to people across the country, particularly in both our counties with regard to the matches coming up this weekend. The reality is that the GAA is an independent body that makes its own decisions about matters such as this. It is responsible for the management of the commercial rights to its games and competitions. We all know that a challenge for the GAA and all sporting organisations is how to strike a balance between generating revenue from such rights and ensuring as wide an audience as possible for the games.”
“No doubt the Senator and the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, will explore this in more detail. I will certainly relay back the nature of the discussion here today.”
“I have no doubt but that the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, will be glad to continue to engage on the matter. The Senator has put the argument very constructively here. He has also outlined the specific case of Councillor Reilly, as a bus driver in County Louth. There has been movement here as can be seen, in regard to the smaller public service vehicles. That is a step forward. I have seen this issue raised on a number of occasions. There is significant validity to the safety considerations that have to be paramount in relation to any adjustments to them. We have seen that pilot adjustment from age 70 to 72. That will be closely assessed and monitored. The Senator makes the point that there should be larger eligibility than the current pilot allows.”
“Under the revised policy, enhanced safety measures will be implemented whereby drivers over 70 years of age are required to undertake an additional six-month medical fitness assessment. Contractor compliance with conditions associated with the change to this policy will be monitored by Bus Éireann for the duration of the trial. Bus Éireann advises that this policy change will remain under continuous review throughout the two-year trial period, with a further evaluation conducted at its conclusion to determine whether the extended age limit should be maintained or discontinued.”
“Following this review, Bus Éireann has advised of an extension to the upper age limit of drivers from the age of 70 to 72, for a trial period. This extension will apply to drivers of small public service vehicles, which have a maximum of eight seats and a driver, who are contracted by Bus Éireann under the school transport scheme. Bus Éireann further advises that this decision follows extensive research, stakeholder engagement and a thorough safety review undertaken by Bus Éireann. The trial period for this extension of the driver age limit is for two years, beginning from the start of the new school year in September 2026 and ending at the conclusion of the 2027-28 school year in June 2028.”
“The Department of Education and Youth engaged with Bus Éireann and the Department of Transport on this matter. The Road Safety Authority, under the remit of the Department of Transport, committed to reviewing the upper age limit of drivers as it relates to larger vehicles and school buses. This review is now complete. Bus Éireann has no plans to amend the driver age limit for larger vehicles. To consider fully all vehicles, Bus Éireann secured independent external consultants to undertake an independent analysis of the safety considerations, criteria and feasibility of raising the maximum driving age of drivers of small public service vehicles contracted to deliver school transport services under the school transport scheme. The review of the upper age limit of drivers as it relates to smaller vehicles has now been completed.”
“The scheme is operated using a mix of Bus Éireann-owned vehicles and directly recruited drivers and private contractors that recruit their own drivers to operate the scheme. In the current school year, more than 181,000 children are transported daily to primary, post-primary and special schools throughout the country. Included in this figure are close to 25,000 children travelling on the school transport scheme for children with special educational needs. The retirement age for school bus drivers has been set by Bus Éireann at 70 years of age, which also applies to all Bus Éireann road passenger services. Under the programme for Government a commitment was made to "Carry out an independent assessment on the feasibility of removing the exclusion of drivers aged over 70 from the School Transport Scheme".”
“I thank Senator Scahill. I have been asked by the Minister of State with responsibility for school transport, Deputy Michael Moynihan, to take this matter on his behalf this morning. He apologises that he is not available to do so himself. I certainly will relay the conversation back and the discussion that we have on it here this morning and the particular point the Senator is making in relation to those who drive buses for special education students in terms of that particular challenge, which is not included so far. I will relay that back following on from the discussion this morning. Now, I will lay out the position from the Department in terms of the official response here from the Department of Education and Youth, which is responsible for the school transport scheme. It is managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department.”
“I hope, in terms of their input and particularly the ongoing appropriate engagement between An Post and the staff, that this is stepped out in a way that works for the staff and particularly for the public, whom we all want to see properly served in their local communities.”
“It is important that An Post is in a position to respond to that, has the capacity to deal with it and is at the forefront of that change to ensure our commercial semi-State body is at the heart of the postal service and commercial delivery in the future, also because it has a public service remit. Considering how the public is served and considering letter delivering capacity, we need to continue to have a good postal letter service in the future. With An Post at the forefront of the online commercial side, it can also make sure that it will be in a position to provide the best possible letter delivery service because of the financial strength of the company. I thank the Deputies for raising this matter. I will certainly take it up and have that meeting facilitated.”
“The most important engagement here will be between An Post and its staff in relation to the proposal and the management of that, and taking on board any concerns that are there. It is important that that continues and is detailed and respectful of everyone. The Deputies, as public representatives, are raising how this issue will impact on the wider public and the importance of staff engagement. I will request that a meeting be organised with them to discuss these issues further. We all know and accept, I think, that significant change is happening.”
“That is why the Government has increased funding to the post office network from €10 million to €15 million this year to make sure we can maintain a strong post office network in the midst of that change.”
“That does mean, I know, that in many parts of the country - I have the same in my county - they are having to change their sorting offices and to consolidate them into delivery and sorting offices which are capable of meeting that increased demand and the increased demand that will be there in the future. There has been a lot of change already in relation to this. I note the issues the Deputies have raised. I will facilitate and ask for a meeting with them. From the point of view of the Government, we want An Post to be strong and, in particular, we want its services to the public, whether in relation to letters or parcels, to be effective. We also want the post office network to be maintained.”
“Obviously, the number of letters and how people conduct their lives is changing. It is really important that An Post is in a position to be able to adapt and be at the forefront of that change, particularly being able to accommodate the demand in terms of parcels, online sales and business that is happening, and it has been. It is very much at the forefront of that and is doing a really good job. For it to be able to continue to be a strong company, serving the public of this country into the future, it is really important that we work with it in enabling it to be able to deal with that demand and work with all of its staff in a way that serves the public well.”
“This work includes securing local post offices to enable customers to pick up missed mail. As noted, it is a matter for the company directly as opposed to the Government. Neither I nor the Minister, Deputy O’Donovan, as the shareholders, are in a position to make these decisions. It is an operational matter for it. An Post has noted that it is consolidating its national network of local sorting offices, also known as delivery service units, DSUs, on the basis that it needs larger and purpose fitted premises to manage increased parcel volumes. It is also in the process of hiring and will be hiring 300 additional postmen and women across the country, some of whom will be working in this area to manage the massive growth that we are seeing in volumes. We are seeing a transformation in relation to postal services.”
“Obviously, whenever there is change such as this, it is really important there is engagement with the staff and the unions, which An Post has informed me is ongoing. It is really important that is the case but it is also appropriate in this case that it should meet with the Deputies, who have expressed concerns, to discuss the plan and where it is at and how everyone can be consulted and engaged with and that change is managed in a way that works for everyone. An Post has advised me that it is considering moving the An Post delivery office - not the post office but the delivery office - from Edmondstown, Dublin 16, to a new Dublin west delivery hub later this year. It has noted as well that it is in consultation with its union and staff and that the company will be working hard to ensure local customers are not disadvantaged.”
“I thank Deputies Ahern, Lahart and Crowe, and Deputy Murphy as well, for bringing this matter to the Chamber and raising it with me. The Deputies will already be aware of the statutory structure of An Post. It is an independent commercial State body and makes its decisions in this regard. These decisions are operational in nature. I know Deputies are aware of that. As they have outlined, it is an important issue in their area and they are bringing it to the floor of the Dáil. They are seeking particular engagement with An Post. Coming out of this debate today, I will engage with An Post informing it of the concerns Deputies have raised on the floor of the Dáil as public representatives in the area and ask that the relevant management of An Post meet with them to discuss the matter.”
“It makes such a difference and is such a gift from those people to their local communities in terms of the time they give up throughout their week for a wonderful dividend with sport being part of more and more people's lives on a regular basis.”
“That is a reflection of the really strong work that the volunteer input that drives our clubs and makes support possible in communities is achieving. From a Government point of view, we have to work to try to support clubs with their key priorities in how they are developing their club best to meet the needs of their members and the participation demands that are on them as well. We look forward to working closely with the Deputies to finalise the detail of this review, and then to having a round open over the next number of months and to make sure that it is as practical and as accessible as possible for clubs to be able to participate in it. We will all work collectively as a Government then to try to support the great work happening in our communities, driven by clubs and underpinned entirely by a voluntary commitment and effort.”
“We will monitor it as it goes. There will be one round of the LSSIF over the Government's terms. We are considering the caps as part of the review. The Minister and I will engage with the Department of public expenditure and across government as well to make sure that the funding envelope can be as strong as possible. That will inform where we are at with the caps as well in terms of the level of funding that can be made available and our general guidance on that. Going around the country, I met Deputies McGrath and Cleere in their own areas. I know they have many projects they want to see going forward. There is real demand. It is exceptionally rare that I visit a club or an organisation that is not under pressure for capacity and space.”
“I thank Deputies McGrath, Cleere and Ó Murchú. With regard to Deputy McGrath's question on the large-scale infrastructure fund, we have had two rounds of that fund so far, in 2019 and 2024. The national development plan provides for one round to be conducted and opened during this Government term. We expect it will be a couple of years from now, towards the latter end of the Government, because the current focus is on drawing down funding and making sure the projects funded in the most recent round are followed through on. We will be monitoring that closely. We are not talking about the next year or 18 months, but a time beyond that, perhaps in a couple of years. We will monitor it as it goes. We will monitor that closely. We are not talking about the next year or 18 months. We are talking a couple of years beyond that.”
“We are working towards being able to open up the fund, all things going well, next month, pending Government approvals, and to have an application round over the next months.”
“Clubs must have a lease or ownership of a premises if they are applying for a capital development grant, but not so for equipment grants. This is certainly an option that clubs will be able to avail of as well. I am meeting many clubs to gain feedback and provide information opportunities to clubs in different counties. We are also engaging on their experience of previous rounds of funding. The information gathered as part of that will help inform the review of this round to make sure it is as workable and practical as possible for clubs and to address the particular challenges we see as regards areas that have growing demand and sports that may have been underfunded in the past.”
“These will be made clear to clubs when we open it up. This applies to the standard club applications, which, under the previous round, were for a maximum grant of €200,000, and the regional applications, which were for a maximum grant of €500,000 under the previous round. The stream within the community sports facilities fund for equipment grants will be available again this time around. That was capped at €70,000 last time around. Clubs can apply for that. We had discussions earlier about the challenges of getting access to premises. Through this round, we want to bring about more collaboration around how people provide facilities where clubs do not have premises. Basketball and boxing clubs, for example, which may not have a premises and instead rent premises, are eligible to apply for equipment grants.”
“Significant work on a review of the previous round has been undertaken. We are working towards being ready to open for applications next month. We also have to finalise our engagement with the Department of public expenditure in advance of that. A lot of work has been carried out. We are also in the position of finalising a new communications or IT platform on which applications will be received. Everyone involved with clubs across the country will be very familiar with the OSCAR platform, which has been in place for over 20 years. Work is being finalised on a new platform which will be ready to accept applications on this occasion. It will be more user-friendly for clubs and for those making applications. We are also finalising the finer detail in relation to the terms and conditions and how the scheme will operate.”
“The Government's objective, through grants from the community sports facilities fund, is to work with clubs to help them develop their facilities. We have seen the significant impact these grants have had since 1998 when the community sports facilities fund, previously the sports capital fund, was established. A total of €1.4 billion has been invested in grants to clubs, with 19,000 different projects supported. There has been a significant and generational change in the quality of facilities across the country as a result. The most recent round saw the largest ever investment in the community sports facilities fund, at just under €270 million, with over 3,000 projects supported and 40 different sports types benefiting. We are now in the process of preparing for the next round.”