Denise Mitchell
Dublin Bay North · Sinn Féin · Ireland
“It is because she is a lone parent caring for her daughter who has high support needs. She fears that while she is recovering, she simply will not be able to care for her daughter. These are the kinds of choices people are being forced to make.”
“I welcome the motion. Many families in my constituency contacted me ahead of this debate. Listening to their stories, it is clear they go above and beyond for their sons and daughters. Many of their sons and daughters have moderate, serious or profound intellectual disabilities.”
“One of the best ways we can address the cost-of-living crisis for families with young children is to bring down the cost of childcare and make it more accessible. In my own constituency of Dublin Bay North, we have a lot of new housing estates with young families and the waiting list for childcare places is simply huge.”
“SIPTU's report found that 86% of early years educators identified low pay as their biggest issue and two thirds also raised the problem of extra pressure due to staff shortages and stress. Everybody in this House will agree that the people we entrust to educate and care for our children should feel valued and that starts with fair pay.”
“As has been said, this is a fantastic school. It serves a disadvantaged community. As has been said as well, 40% of the students in the school are from the Traveller community. This school has children attending from Darndale and the wider community around Priorswood. The decision that has been taken, therefore, is absolutely ridiculous.”
“I am frustrated by the Minister of State's response. St. Francis school was mentioned only in the last two paragraphs that he read. I cannot understand how the Minister can award a school DEIS plus status and then, on the other hand, remove a teacher. This was resolved in 2020, and the five TDs here are asking her to do so again.”
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“It is because she is a lone parent caring for her daughter who has high support needs. She fears that while she is recovering, she simply will not be able to care for her daughter. These are the kinds of choices people are being forced to make. It is a very simple question they are asking: who will care for my son or daughter if I am no longer able to do so? That is why we need a one-stop-shop that can process and manage applications and link to the Departments of housing and disability, the local authorities, service providers and families. People with disabilities have the right to live as independently as possible in their communities. If we do not provide adequate residential and supported living options, we are denying these people their rights. The upcoming budget gives us a real opportunity to get this right.”
“I welcome the motion. Many families in my constituency contacted me ahead of this debate. Listening to their stories, it is clear they go above and beyond for their sons and daughters. Many of their sons and daughters have moderate, serious or profound intellectual disabilities. Some parents find it so difficult to find the time to campaign and advocate on this issue which is why it is up to everyone in here to do that on their behalf and address these issues head on. Over 2,300 adults with intellectual disabilities are currently being cared for by a parent over 70 years of age. These parents are terrified about what will happen if they can no longer provide that care. One lady in my constituency contacted my office and told us how she is putting off a hip operation she badly needs. Why?”
“SIPTU's report found that 86% of early years educators identified low pay as their biggest issue and two thirds also raised the problem of extra pressure due to staff shortages and stress. Everybody in this House will agree that the people we entrust to educate and care for our children should feel valued and that starts with fair pay. If we really want to deliver a public childcare system, we need to grasp the nettle here and begin examining where the State could take responsibility for wages and associated costs in the sector. Investing in our young people and their education from an early age benefits society as a whole. We can get this right but affordability, accessibility and workforce issues need to be addressed to make sure we do.”
“One of the best ways we can address the cost-of-living crisis for families with young children is to bring down the cost of childcare and make it more accessible. In my own constituency of Dublin Bay North, we have a lot of new housing estates with young families and the waiting list for childcare places is simply huge. The fact is it is stopping many people from returning to work. The cost for those who manage to secure a place are still way too high. While I welcome the progress that has been made in this area, the reality is that parents are still paying the equivalent of a second mortgage every month. When it comes to capacity, if it does not have the staff, the Government cannot deliver the places in the system. Therefore, we need to ask why is staff turnover so high and why is recruitment so difficult. It is very clear.”
“I am frustrated by the Minister of State's response. St. Francis school was mentioned only in the last two paragraphs that he read. I cannot understand how the Minister can award a school DEIS plus status and then, on the other hand, remove a teacher. This was resolved in 2020, and the five TDs here are asking her to do so again. The Minister of State is going against his own programme for Government. It states the Government wants to reduce class sizes but, given what is happening, classes are going to have to merge into bigger classes.”
“As has been said, this is a fantastic school. It serves a disadvantaged community. As has been said as well, 40% of the students in the school are from the Traveller community. This school has children attending from Darndale and the wider community around Priorswood. The decision that has been taken, therefore, is absolutely ridiculous. The school was short just one pupil by a specific date, and this means it is going to lose a teacher. It was already said that all five TDs met the school community. This school community is very angry at this decision. Will the Minister intervene and either overrule the decision or find some other mechanism to make sure that this school does not lose its teacher?”
“It says that states must prevent all trade and investment with illegal settlements. What, then, is the Bill before us? I will tell the Minister what it is. It is a half-arsed attempt to be seen to do something. It does not go far enough. We need to have some guts on this issue and include services in this Bill. If Spain can do it, so can we.”
“It has taken the Government eight years to finally bring this version of the occupied territories Bill before this House - eight years of delays, eight years of dithering and eight years of blocking the Opposition. During those eight years, Israel has gone on a genocidal rampage in Gaza, murdering 70,000 people: men, women, children and babies. It has established dozens of illegal settlements and moved tens of thousands more settlers onto Palestinian land in the West Bank. After all that, the Minister comes in here with a Bill that has been gutted. Some 70% of the trade between Ireland and Israel is in services, but this Bill allows that to continue because only physical goods will be subject to the ban. The International Court of Justice makes no distinction between goods and services.”
“On one hand, this school is DEIS plus, so it can receive the increased supports while on the other hand, the Government is removing a mainstream teacher.”
“I want to raise the case of St. Francis Junior School in Priorswood. It is a school that is at the heart of the community and a source of great pride to the area, yet it is losing a mainstream teacher for being one pupil under the quota back in September 2025. The school has had more pupils enrolled since then but its appeal has been rejected. There is huge anger in the community. This is a DEIS plus school. It serves a very disadvantaged area and 40% of the pupils come from a Traveller background. The Minister said that the appeals board is independent and that she has no ability to intervene. Back in 2020, however, the school was facing an identical situation and the then Minister for education intervened and the school saved its teacher.”
“What will the Minister of State say to them? What will he say to those who have worked all their lives and are now wondering whether they will ever have a secure roof over their heads? There is nowhere for these people to go. We need an emergency ban on rent increases and no-fault evictions and that includes council tenants. The Government needs to ramp up social housing and truly affordable private homes. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have had 15 years to get this right and again and again, they have let families down. All they seem to do is make the situation worse and this has to change.”
“Here we go again. The Government comes in here and pats itself on the back for everything it is doing on housing while families face evictions and rent hikes and we have record homelessness. When Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Independents introduced the rent hike Bill last summer, we warned that all it would do was push more families into homelessness and - surprise, surprise - that is precisely what has happened. The Minister of State and the Government sided with institutional investors and big landlords and threw renters under the bus. Behind every one of the 7,000 eviction notices - the highest number ever recorded - are real people and families. Think of a family who have just secured a place in the local school for this September and are now scrambling to find a home in the same area, when there is nothing available.”
“It is said that in New Zealand, there are about 57 flavours - I am not suggesting that there be 57 flavours - and they are very basic with simple words describing the product, for example mint, vanilla and so on. That would be the preferred model because it would allow adults to make personal decisions but it would also get rid of the flavour names and the packaging that is seen to target young children. Other measures include regulating the packaging, stopping advertising and taking the products off public display. We have seen that it can work in New Zealand so we should be trying that here. Overall, I welcome this legislation but I would caution the Minister of State against being too restrictive with regard to flavoured vape products.”
“I note, however, that it states the Minister can add flavours to, or remove them from, the list. I worry that if we are too restrictive on this, two things will happen. The first is that the outlets will simply sell nicotine vape fluid in one packet and the flavour additive in another and people will go off and mix them at home. The second is more concerning, namely, that if flavour additives are banned, we could have a situation where additives are purchased online or on the black market. That raises serious concerns about what is in them, whether they are safe to consume, the levels of various chemicals and so on. We have seen how the system in New Zealand appears to work well. Under this system, there is a fairly broad but approved list of flavours maintained by the ministry of health.”
“We largely support this Bill. For far too long, vaping products have been on display at shop counters, on streets and even on stand-alone stands in shopping centres, very clearly targeting teenagers and young people. It is very welcome that this Bill closes the loophole that allows the sale of nicotine pouches to under-18s, and it regulates the advertising of nicotine products in retail outlets, similar to what is already in place for cigarettes. It is good to see that this legislation is also future-proofed against any new nicotine products that may come on the market. All that is very welcome. On the banning or restricting of vape flavours, I do not believe an outright ban is helpful. This Bill currently allows for only two flavours: unflavoured and tobacco.”
“I want to raise the planned Garda headquarters at Northern Cross. As the Taoiseach will be aware, this was announced eight years ago. I and many people in the constituency are getting frustrated because we are getting mixed messages. Last week, the Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW said he hoped that this would commence in 2028 but then he went on to say that no site has been identified. The elected representatives for the area have been told for the past seven years that a site had been identified and is being progressed. I am asking the Taoiseach to get us some clarification because the last thing we need is mixed messages.”
“The community is left with a bizarre situation: the NCSE has agreed there is demand for two additional classes, but when the latest list of additional special classes was released by the Department last week, they were not included. The school authorities say one of the reasons it has been told the modular units will not be sanctioned is that the school building is too new. Seriously, how can the age of a building have anything to do with the level of demand in our area? I urge the Minister and Minister of State to examine this case, in particular. On the overall motion, let us be clear: we need to see this problem solved. Children need to be put first because this is an issue on which we cannot wait any longer. We need to see the additional funding and resources for September.”
“One of the main issues raised in my constituency office is the lack of appropriate school places for children with additional needs. Every year, it seems to be getting worse, with more parents upset and worried about their children's future. Recently we had the announcement of the new inclusive special classes, which appears to be a plan to increase class sizes without a similar increase in staff, funding and support. I find that very worrying. I want to raise with the Minister the case of Strapolin Educate Together National School in my constituency. This school has been a leader in inclusive education. It has the space to accommodate additional autism classes on campus but it needs modular classrooms to do this.”
“As usual, we have too little too late, with half measures coming from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, all backed by the so-called regional Independents, including people such as Deputy Heneghan, who is in my constituency. He told voters he would be an independent voice and would be free from party restrictions. The reality is that he and the rest of the Lowry lackeys take their orders from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.”
“Meanwhile, in Clonshaugh, there are data centres paying half of what households do for their electricity. How is that fair? We had promises from the Government of a cost-of-disability payment and for an end to the means test for carer's allowance. Those are more broken promises. Instead, the Government left them worse off after the budget. What ever happened to standing up for the people who get up early in the morning? Do we remember that phrase, of which Fine Gael was so fond? Those people got nothing. I cannot be the only TD in Dublin Bay North who is hearing about the unfairness of it all. I am sure the Deputies from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, and Deputy Heneghan, are hearing it, too. If they are, I must ask them if they care. People want a Government that will listen to them and will make decisions to make their lives easier.”
“I have no confidence in this Government. I never had confidence in this Government. Over the years, I have watched as the concerns of ordinary people and workers take a back seat so Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael can please big businesses, lobbyists and vulture funds. The thing that gets to me is the unfairness of it all. Thousands of children are homeless. At the same time, we have seen this Government throwing families to the wolves with its rent hike Bill. We have seen houses and apartment blocks being snapped up by vulture funds that pay little or not tax and then rent them to hard-working people at outrageous prices. Families in my constituency are struggling with their ESB bills. Elderly people are terrified to turn on their heating because of the cost.”
“Sometimes it really does feel like Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil are living on another planet. People are struggling with their bills now. They need the Government to do something now to help them alleviate this cost, not to keep dithering and running around like it usually does. Elderly citizens cannot afford to heat their homes. We have commuters paying an arm and a leg to get to work and all along the Government is raking in huge taxes on these fuels. It is good to hear the Tánaiste now say he is going to do something, but please do it now because people cannot wait any longer.”
“This feels like 2022 all over again. Honestly, workers and families just cannot seem to catch a break when it comes to this cost-of-living crisis. We have seen fuel prices surge over the past two weeks and Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have sat on their hands and twiddled their fingers here for two weeks. Then, while people have been worrying and going through massive stress, the Government parties come into the Chamber and say to people they are going to do something for them but they have to wait until the next Cabinet meeting. The thing is, people cannot wait. The Tánaiste needs to use his powers now. He can do it by reducing the excise duty on home heating oil, petrol and diesel and easing the pressure on families across this State. He can also not bring in the Government's plan to increase carbon tax on 1 May.”
“We need to see huge investment in social and affordable homes and we need to restore the tenant in situ scheme back to its proper funding.”
“Only last week my office was speaking to a woman who was recently made homeless with a young child. She rang up Parkgate Street and was told no emergency accommodation was available in Dublin. Her only option was to go to County Meath. It was totally impractical. This woman did not drive. How was she supposed to get her child to school? On top of the trauma and the real upset of the loss of a secure home, this child's education is going to be seriously impacted. We have people in my constituency stuck on the council housing list for ten, 12, 15 and more years. We have so-called affordable housing where a three-bedroom house is over €.0.5 million. On what planet is that affordable? This is a disaster of Fianna Fáil's and Fine Gael's making.”
“When Fine Gael entered Government in 2011, we had 641 children living in emergency accommodation. After 15 years of Fine Gael in government, propped up by Fianna Fáil for most of the time, we now have over 5,000 children homeless. That is a disgrace. It is not an accident. It is a direct result of the Government's bad policies. One example of that is cutting the funding for the tenant in situ scheme. In 2024, the scheme in Dublin City Council had €115 million in funding. Last year, guess what was is? Last year, it was cut to €38 million. This scheme was an incredibly important one because it worked. It was a vital homeless prevention measure. It kept families in their homes. I urge the Minister of State to increase funding for this scheme at the very least back to 2024 levels. The situation on the ground is desperate.”
“I thank the Ceann Comhairle. We need a debate on the review into CAMHS in North Kerry. This is a deeply concerning issue that highlights serious failures relating to the care of children and young people. The lives of young people and their families have been turned upside down due to the failures of the service. We need a debate on this topic as a matter of urgency.”
“We need solutions in the here and now, like flood defences. We need longer term solutions that look at the overall land use plan and how we can minimise and reduce the risk of these events happening in the future.”
“We all know that a lot of the flooding is due to high rainfall, and with sodden ground, the excess water has nowhere else to go. Drains were at capacity, rivers were swollen and culverts could not take any more water. A much broader discussion needs to take place. It means not just flood protection measures. It means a proper strategy for rainwater harvesting and storage to reduce run-off during heavy periods of rainfall. It also means natural ways of reducing these impacts, such as planting trees beside rivers rather than constantly clearing them, and stopping the modification and straightening of rivers from their natural flow. All that does is cause more problems because it increases the river’s speed and creates pinch points. This extreme weather is not going away and is likely to become more common.”
“Electricity was out for days, so all the food in their fridges and freezers was spoiled. Some residents did get temporary accommodation sorted by the management company, but it meant they were in places as far away as Tyrrelstown. Those either who did not drive or whose vehicles were stuck in the underground car park had to rent cars or get taxis to their workplaces or even bring their kids to school. I urge the Minister of State to make phase 1 of the emergency response payment available to those residents to enable them to recoup some of their immediate costs. With regard to solutions, we need a national flood warning service that is fully up and running. It has been ten years since the Government said it was establishing that service, but the ground conditions are still not being taken into account.”
“There are new temporary barriers in place for the past few months but business owners and residents want a permanent solution and they want it sooner rather than later. We have been told by Dublin City Council that construction on the permanent flood defences will not begin until 2031. If that goes well, it will be completed by 2033. There is no sense of urgency here and this is the area identified as one of the most at risk of flooding in the State. We need to see the flood defences in place. We were told it would take three years before this planning application would be ready to be submitted but this needs to happen much sooner. In regard to Clongriffin, where residents' properties and vehicles were left flooded, the residents themselves were left high and dry in terms of the costs they incurred.”
“I will start by thanking all the emergency response workers, council teams and other staff who did their very best to help residents affected by the recent flooding incidents. In my own constituency, we had separate incidents of flooding. We had the tidal flood waters in Clontarf. Then there was significant flooding in the northern part of the constituency, in and around Clongriffin. We saw properties and underground car parks flooded. We had roads that were impassable and a number of rivers burst their banks. We also had recent flooding in Fairview, which was due to a burst pipe. In regard to Clontarf, this issue has been ongoing for decades. We had sandbags sitting there for over a decade.”
“It promised to do all it could to make housing affordable for hard-working people. How much longer is the Government going to stand by and allow faceless companies to compete and rip off Irish families and workers? I plead with the Minister not to add this to his already long list of broken promises. It is time to ban investor funds from snapping up family homes once and for all.”
“Back in January 2024, the vultures swooped in and bought up 46 of 54 family homes at Belcamp Manor in Dublin Bay North. The then Taoiseach, Simon Harris, wrote to the finance Minister saying that the bulk purchasing of family homes cannot be tolerated. However, it has continued, except now it is happening on the Minister for Finance, Simon Harris's, watch. The investment funds snapping up these homes are now renting them back at eye-watering prices. Some of these funds are not paying any tax on that rent because they are based outside the State. The higher stamp duty that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael eventually brought in to curb the bulk purchasing has not worked. How does the Minister expect ordinary workers and families to compete with these funds? His Government promised it would tackle this problem head-on.”
“That is an enormous amount of work, especially when one considers that the overwhelming majority of these accounts posting this material online are anonymous. On top of investigating those who are directly creating the images, we need to see these companies that are flouting the law held to account. If we do not begin to tackle this behaviour and if guardrails are not put in place to prevent this sort of abuse, then they have to face serious crimes and the possibility of a criminal investigation.”
“I welcome this very straightforward amendment to Coco's Law. It makes it very clear that the crime of recording or distributing non-consensual intimate images of a person also extends to images and videos created by AI. Over recent months, we have seen an explosion in the use of AI technology distributing sexual abuse material, particularly of women and children. The use of AI bots to abuse people online is completely unacceptable. This has to be stopped. The way we do this is by bringing this Bill forward and putting it in place. We also need to ensure that gardaí have the resources to make sure that those who are breaking the law are held to account. We heard last month from the gardaí that they are investigating around 200 cases of sexual abuse material from the Grok AI tool alone.”
“There were promises of more meetings but those meetings never happened. If we, as local representatives, were frustrated trying to get answers, just imagine how that wider community felt. My party president, Deputy Mary Lou McDonald, met residents' groups, community groups and local clubs on the situation. She addressed the then Taoiseach and called for respectful dialogue and engagement with our community. That did not happen. The community of Coolock is getting on with it now but this Government needs to learn lessons from how the situation in Coolock was handled. We need a proper strategy for the location of these centres and for the integration of those who seek refuge here. We need to end the ability of private companies to make millions in profits off the back of Ireland’s shambles of an asylum system.”
“To address our IPAS system, I represent Dublin Bay North where the former Crown Paints site in Coolock was to be used for IPAS accommodation. Coolock is an area that has been ignored by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments for decades. An abandoned paint factory in a community abandoned by Government is not a suitable place for an IPAS centre. The only reason it was considered was that private interests saw an opportunity to make a quick profit out of it. The planning exemption for IPAS centres needs to be ended and we need to see proper engagement with our communities. As a TD for the area, I can tell the Minister that trying to get answers from the Department on what was happening with Crown Paints was like trying to get blood out of a stone. There was one meeting of elected representatives at which many concerns were raised.”
“Signing up to the EU asylum and migration pact is not in Ireland's interest. What the Government is essentially doing is handing over control of decisions on migration to the European Union. Sinn Féin has always been of the opinion that Ireland, not Europe, should be the one that makes decisions on these important issues. That is why we oppose the majority of measures in this pact. The reality is that our asylum and international protection system has been a complete and utter mess for decades. We have seen families left waiting in limbo for years for their applications to be processed. This is totally unfair, especially on children. We need a fair system in which rules are applied equally and those applying for asylum and local communities are treated with respect.”
“They know the children's concerns and asks. I have concerns about GALs and Tusla being under the same Department and Minister. I echo the calls from other speakers that the Minister meet with the association of GALs to discuss these matters. In terms of foster parents, I welcome that the timeframe for the application for enhanced rights has decreased from five years to three. Children placed in care have formed very strong relationships and bonds with their foster parents so allowing a foster parent to make a day-to-day decision on a child makes sense. However, let us be clear: we need to do a lot more work to support foster carers. I look forward to the Bill going through the House. My party will be very constructive and will work with Government Members to ensure its passage.”
“I welcome the chance to speak on this Bill. I want to acknowledge the hard work social workers, link workers and family support workers, etc., do but the reality is the public has lost confidence in Tusla over the years. We need to see steps to rebuild trust. I want to highlight concerns over the future independence of the guardians ad litem, GALs. Their job is to be the voice of the child in court proceedings. It is as simple as that. In some cases, GALs can be critical of the social work Department. They need to be independent and not be concerned about any repercussions from doing their job. There are cases where children in care see their social worker change regularly due to staff turnover but the GAL has been appointed to the child and knows the child inside-out. I know that from my experience as a foster parent.”
“The staff at Northside Home Care Services are back in work today after being on strike last week and they have not ruled out further action. These workers provide supports to some of the most vulnerable in our community. Some of the staff I met on the picket line in Coolock have been doing this job for over 25 years and they were not included in the pay deal for section 39 workers because they were reclassified. Instead of management and the HSE engaging with the union, the HSE threatened their jobs. It warned that it would organise replacement labour from private companies. Now we have the prospect of more industrial action throughout this sector. My question is: when are the workers who do the same work on behalf of the HSE going to receive the same pay for that work? Will the HSE engage with their unions as a matter of urgency?”
“If it wants to deal with water being wasted, it should fix the pipes because a third of the water goes into the ground before it even hits the tap.”
“There were high levels of metals in the water and some do-not-consume notices were issued. Irish Water, in fairness, did communicate with residents and myself, but the issue is that the actual problem still has not been fixed. Residents are understandably frustrated because they cannot get a timeline for when this work will be done. I understand it can take time to identify the source of a problem, but we are now three months on and this is just a small street. Expanding and repairing water infrastructure and the sewerage system needs to be a top priority if we want to be able to address the challenges we are facing in this State, but I warn the Government against using these problems with our water infrastructure to try to reintroduce water charges by the back door with an excessive use charge.”
“We have had years of underinvestment in water, electricity and public transport. One thing annoys people no end: listening to Government Ministers boast about how well the economy is doing when basic services that should be world-class are in a state of despair. On the broader issues of water and repairs, I will give Irish Water some credit. Its communications for upcoming planned works have improved but in terms of outages, problems with supplies and identifying where repairs need to happen, the delays are just unacceptable. I could stand here like other Deputies and give the Minister of State loads of examples from my constituency, but I have decided to give just one. At Charlemont Lane in Clontarf, residents have had an issue with discolouration in their water since last October. Irish Water did the testing.”
“This Bill provides a common-sense way forward. Instead of criminalising these young people who are using it, the Bill will regulate the sale and make it much more difficult for it be misused. There is no legitimate reason for a teenager to be using this. There is none, so please let us get working on this Bill.”
“The reason the use of this drug has increased so much is it is cheap, and users and sellers face little risk under the law. Anybody can go online and order a crate of it, then resell these canisters individually and make a tidy profit. This Bill cuts out all that. Anybody wanting to sell it wholesale will need a licence. Anybody selling it via retail will need to be on a register of approved sellers. The other rules in the Bill are similar to those for alcohol. The person purchasing and the person selling it will have to be over 18, and it allows gardaí to seize canisters from anybody they suspect is under the age of 18. It is simple. We all know that nitrous oxide misuse is not low risk when it comes to a person's health. We see people who use it suffering serious nerve damage, neurological conditions, seizures and much more.”
“Here we go again. The Government has decided to kick the can down the road on a common-sense Bill. It knows there is no way that anybody would oppose this Bill so instead it decided to delay it by nine months. Government talks about all of us working together. Yet here we have a positive piece of work and instead of supporting it going to Committee Stage and teasing out any of the issues he has, the Minister has decided to delay it. In my constituency, the use of nitrous oxide by teenagers has been an ongoing problem since way before the pandemic. Football and GAA teams have to show up early to clear their pitches of canisters, in some cases boxes of them, before a match can kick off. It is the same with our playgrounds. Parents are going to playgrounds to clean them up.”
“There needs to be strict monitoring and regulation of AI systems used for this purpose. The big issue here, and it is something that the National Youth Council of Ireland mentioned recently, is the need for proactive public engagement and education on AI systems. Digital literacy and education for young people is particularly important because the reality is this technology is not going away, so they need to understand it. They need to know the rules around it and they need to be equipped for the challenges that it also poses.”
“It also led to a huge increase in misinformation, not to mention serious copyright and privacy laws infringements. We have also seen the use of AI systems by militaries, particularly by Israel in Gaza to completely blur the lines of accountability when it comes to the responsibility of war crimes. Like any new technology, the regulation governing its use needs to evolve at the same pace. We have all probably heard about situations where AI is being used to screen applicants for jobs, for example. There are concerns that this could result in applicants of certain backgrounds, class, gender or race being excluded from a shortlist when CVs are filtered through the system. That can just be down to the original data used to train the system not being reflective of society as a whole.”