Thomas Byrne
Meath East · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“We are very proud of the work they do in what are often very dangerous circumstances. Let us be 100% clear: our troops will only ever do peacekeeping, peace enforcement or conflict prevention in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter and, of course, as with every action of this Government, in accordance with the Constitution.”
“To be clear on what our troops will be doing, they will be doing peacekeeping, peace enforcement and conflict prevention. That is what the law says; not what the Deputy imagines it to be. We are bound by our Constitution and international law. The legislation changes nothing in that regard.”
“We are bound by international law. We are bound by international law since our Constitution came into force and we continue to be bound by international law and always will be, no matter what happens to this legislation. International law governs what we do as a Government.”
“I propose to take Questions Nos. 125, 140, 157 and 185 together. I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister. A commitment to reform what is known as the triple lock was set out in the programme for Government.”
“-----in accordance with UN principles and, of course, in accordance with our own Constitution, which commits us to peace and friendly relations among nations. The triple lock is a statutory mechanism.”
“Switzerland, the classical neutral country that is not even a member of the European Union and will never join the European Union, it is so neutral and independent, accepts UN, EU and OSCE mandates. I understand the situation is similar in Austria, which is another neutral country. By the way, it is also similar in Germany.”
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“Leis an nGníomh um Sheirbhísí Digiteacha, ceanglaítear ar ardáin ar líne modhnóireacht a dhéanamh ar ábhar digiteach san Aontas agus an riosca a mhaolú go mbeadh ábhar mídhleathach ar a n-ardáin. Is príomhuirlis é chun tacú le seasmhacht dhaonlathas an Aontais Eorpaigh. Maidir le himirce, labhróidh mé faoin mhachnamh atá ar bun i réimse na himirce chomh maith. Labhróidh freisin faoi chosaint leanaí ar líne agus an plé a bhí déanta ina leith. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked me about children being stolen from Ukraine and brought to Russia. That was discussed at the European Council as well. I want to put on the record that it was something that was important to us. I am grateful for all of the contributions Members have made in the debate today. I can leave the full script because I did not get through it all.”
“Áirítear leis sin cosaint na gcáblaí fomhuirí agus cosaint bonneagair eile atá ríthábhachtach d'fheidhmiú ár ngeilleagar. Mar gheall ar a cuid feachtas hibrideach gan stad, is baol mór an Rúis maidir le seasmhacht, daonlathas agus comhtháthú sóisialta ar fud na hEorpa agus níos faide i gcéin. Maidir leis an daonlathas, phléigh ceannairí an tábhacht a bhaineann le hathléimneacht dhaonlathach a neartú i gcomhthéacs an mhéadaithe ar bhagairtí ar shláine an daonlathais ar fud an Aontais. Táimid ar son dualgas níos láidre a chur ar ardáin ar líne ionas go mbeidís freagrach sa chomhrá in aghaidh bréagaisnéise agus ábhar mídhleathach. Léiríonn sin tiomantas na hÉireann dá chinntiú go gcuirtear an Gníomh um Sheirbhísí Digiteacha i bhfeidhm go héifeachtach agus go gcoinnítear creat rialála digiteach an Aontais ar bun.”
“Chun freagairt éifeachtach a thabhairt ar an iliomad bagairtí atá romhainn go léir mar phobal, ní mór cur chuige ilghnéitheach agus caolchúiseach a chur i bhfeidhm ag an leibhéal náisiúnta agus ag leibhéal an Aontais. Glacfaidh Éire le cur chuige fiúntach agus dearfach i leith fhorbairt na straitéise nuaí. Ní mór go mbeadh Éire páirteach sa phróiseas seo toisc gur cuid den Aontas Eorpach sinn, go gcuireann na bagairtí atá romhainn ár modh maireachtála i mbaol agus go bhfuil an straitéis fite fuaite inár leas náisiúnta féin. Is ábhar mór imní é an méadú leanúnach ar scála na gníomhaíochta hibridí a dhéantar i gcoinne an Aontais. Táimid ag plé, ar bhealach gníomhach agus tairbheach, le forbairt beartas an Aontais Eorpaigh arb é is aidhm leo troid i gcoinne bagairtí hibrideacha agus ár seasmhacht ina gcoinne a neartú.”
“Chuir lucht an chruinnithe mullaigh fáilte roimh ghlacadh rathúil an euro sa Bhulgáir ón 1 Eanáir 2026 i leith chomh maith. Tá an tAontas Eorpach ag gníomhú le níos mó cinnteachta, uaillmhéine agus luais chun dul i ngleic leis na bagairtí atá romhainn go léir, rud a bhí le feiceáil go soiléir le linn na sraithe cibirionsaithe agus ionsaithe hibrideacha a rinneadh le déanaí, chomh maith le hionraí naimhdeacha in aerspás de chuid bhallstáit an Aontais. Ag Comhairle Eorpach Mhí an Mhárta, lean ceannairí ar aghaidh lena ndíospóireachtaí faoi ullmhacht na hEorpa ó thaobh cosanta de. Chuir siad fáilte mhór roimh an moladh leagan nua de straitéis slándála na hEorpa a fhorbairt agus d'áitigh siad gur cheart go mbeadh na Ballstáit féin i gceannas ar an bpróiseas.”
“Ina ráiteas, chuir Kyriakos Pierrakakis béim láidir ar an ngá atá le comhoibriú idirnáisiúnta ollmhór chun aghaidh a thabhairt ar an éagothroime eacnamaíoch agus ar an tábhacht a bhaineann leis an obair leanúnach a dhéantar chun ról idirnáisiúnta an euro a neartú agus an t-aontas coigiltis agus infheistíochta a chur chun cinn. Tharraing Kyriakos Pierrakakis aird ar iarrachtaí an ghrúpa euro chun córas airgeadais na hEorpa a ullmhú don ré dhigiteach, ar a ról comhordaithe chun inbhuanaitheacht fhioscach a chinntiú agus an grúpa ag tacú le tosaíochtaí straitéiseacha agus ar a obair lárnach chun iomaíochas agus acmhainneacht a neartú. D'iarr ceannairí ar an ngrúpa euro monatóireacht a dhéanamh ar fhorbairtí eacnamaíocha agus rioscaí maidir le hinbhuanaitheacht airgeadais agus cur leis an díospóireacht faoin éagothroime ar fud an domhain.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis na Teachtaí as a gcuid ráiteas agus ceisteanna. Tapóidh mé an deis seo le labhairt go gairid faoi mhíreanna eile ar chlár gnó Chomhairle Eorpach Mhí an Mhárta, lena n-airítear slándáil agus cosaint na hEorpa, imirce, cruinniú mullaigh an euro, sciath don daonlathas agus cosaint leanaí ar líne. Tháinig ceannairí le chéile i gcruinniú mullaigh an euro chun machnamh a dhéanamh ar chúrsaí eacnamaíocha agus airgeadais reatha agus tionchar na coinbhleachta leanúnaí sa Mheánoirthear agus i Murascaill na Peirse á chur san áireamh. I measc daoine eile, chuir Uachtarán an Bhainc Ceannais Eorpaigh, Christine Lagarde, agus uachtarán an ghrúpa euro, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, leis an bplé.”
“I would be happy to get an answer for the Deputy but as the Minister of State with responsibility for European Affairs, I just do not have sight of documents about Cuba. I will get my officials to come back to him directly on that point.”
“Looking back at how he did his campaign over a year and a half, it is an incredible example of coming from almost nothing to getting two thirds of the vote by sheer persistence. I discussed this with the Taoiseach before I spoke today. Our view is we should be generous to the Hungarian people. We should give them the value for the vote they have taken and work with them very quickly. It will be a task for our EU Presidency to unlock those funds. Obviously, there has to be some conditionality attached to that to make sure Hungary reverses some of what has happened. There is a generosity required and Ireland will benefit because Hungarian people will be spending money and seeking products and services, many of which will come from Ireland, if we are honest about it. This will benefit us too.”
“All of that had resulted in over €17 billion of funds being withheld from Hungary. I met Hungarian politicians from the cities, which would not be as Orbánist as the rural areas, and they were crying out for the money. They really felt their areas were losing out big time because of this and their economy was losing out. We had to take a hard line, though. The Hungarian people have reacted. They realised that Orbán had taken them to a place where they should not really have been. I say again that Péter Magyar was not allowed on the television, which is incredible. I met Mr. Magyar in Munich at the security conference a couple of months ago. I had a brief conversation with him and wished him the best of luck but I did not encourage anyone to vote for him. He did that himself.”
“I fully agree. Orbán basically wrecked the economy. It shows that the link between adherence to the rule of law and democratic values and a free media is essential for economic growth. We did not get involved in the election. We did not tell the Hungarian people how to vote. We were very careful about that, even though the temptation was very strong. Over many years, the Taoiseach, Deputy Micheál Martin, and I and various Ministers who have been in government have been very strong in calling out what the Hungarians are doing. That included negotiating the conditionality regulation and working at my Council on rule-of-law issues and holding Hungary to account for some of the things its government had done, which were opposed to the foundational values of the European Union.”
“I have absolutely no doubt that when all the leaders arrive in Cyprus, as they will this weekend, that what is being said in this Parliament is the same as what is being said in their parliaments and every parliament in Europe, particularly on energy costs, and it will be ringing in their ears. I have no doubt they will continue to put pressure on the European Commission to come up with solutions that can be used, adapted or adopted by member states in their own particular circumstances.”
“I agree, and I am not saying the Deputy is wrong. I am just setting that out as an objective. We all ask why the EU is looking for this. It is always important to remember that the Single Market is there and the rules are there to facilitate the Single Market to give us as equal a shout as the Germans, French or whoever. That makes it all better for everybody. The Taoiseach said he wrote to Ursula von der Leyen on some of the issues the Deputy mentioned in regard to looking for an understanding and flexibility in regard to proportionate temporary national measures designed to address the immediate consequences of the current fuel market disruption, while preserving our shared long-term decarbonisation goals. The Taoiseach has done that and we will continue to do that.”
“People complain sometimes about EU rules and ask why the EU has rules on certain issues that maybe do not suit us in particular moments. The reality is those rules enable the Single Market to operate. They should be there to enable us to operate on a level playing field. The Taoiseach has already-----”
“The Taoiseach said that this is going to be a Presidency defined by action and I think this agenda gives us plenty of action to carry out, which will result in serious and solid benefits for consumers and citizens right across the Union.”
“It would enable greater opportunities for the Deputy's constituents and all of our constituents to prosper and for the Single Market to be brought to a reality. We would be able to trade and buy products and services from across the European Union in a way that we are not at the moment. There is a huge opportunity now and I am happy to update the Dáil as this goes along. There is also a lot of work going to take place in Brussels between the governments and in the European Parliament, where our MEPs will be working hard on lots of files but especially these ones over the next few months. We will engage with MEPs as well to try to make sure we get this agenda across.”
“There is a very exciting agenda ahead of us during our Presidency on what is called the one market approach. I have a copy of it here that was given to member states last night. There is a list of items there. At the last count - it may have changed overnight - there were 42 items in that to help bring the Single Market to reality and to give us greater economic prospects. Some 17 of those were slated to be organised, done or agreed during our Presidency. We will wait and see what the leaders agree. It is a big challenge for us, the European Parliament and everybody to bring these measures in in the timeframe proposed. At the same time, if we were to do so, we would have a transformed economy that would be much more resilient to economic shocks.”
“The case has been brought by the European Parliament against the Commission. The practice, and this is a decision for the Commission and the member states which supported it, is to implement the trade provisions of the Mercosur agreement, whenever that happens in the coming period of time, notwithstanding the fact that we voted against it. There are measures to protect farmers, particularly beef farmers in the case of price shocks-----”
“I totally reject that. We have always stood firm on the side of democracy and human rights. To start throwing those allegations around the House is completely wrong. Any sanctions packages we have ever done we have done in recent times at a European level because that is where trade policy is. It is also where one has the most impact. No sanctions have ever been done where the damage to us would be greater than the harm we are seeking to impose to change ways. If he is setting out a policy, as the Deputy is, he has to set out for the people the economic consequences in Ireland of his various proposals.”
“The issue with regard to the European Council and the Foreign Affairs Council on the EU-Israel association agreement is as I said it was, namely, that the Irish Government has engaged with member states to try to bring forward a proposal which is sitting there but needs to be supported by a sufficient number of member states. However, we are not able to do that. That is a fact. I would encourage - we are doing this and we encourage everyone else to do it - is engagement with other member states to see why they do not agree with us. They have other reasons for this. I also reject utterly any suggestions that somehow this Government or politicians in this Government are connected to or complicit, or whatever the phraseology is that the protesters and the Deputy's colleagues in political life use about complicity in genocide.”
“With regard to the Common Agricultural Policy, which was also raised by Deputy Byrne, it is our strong policy to protect the policy and to have it strong, separate, robust and suitable for farmers. Again, we can come into the Dáil to talk and, as the Opposition has done, to castigate the Government. Recently, the former Deputy, Barry Cowen MEP, and a number of other MEPs came to Mullingar to discuss the negotiations on the CAP and it was a very instructive meeting. My officials in Brussels are available to any MEP who wants to talk about CAP and the negotiations we are in, and I will continue to keep Members informed. Our policy here is to ensure there is a robust CAP that protects rural Ireland and serves the fundamental purposes of the CAP, which is to keep farmers on the land and keep the food supply coming to Europe.”
“The narrative that Deputy Nolan put forward in this regard is shameful. She also spoke about the Mercosur agreement. We have accepted that there are issues for beef farmers. That was said all along, and that is why the Government voted against it. The Deputy should also recognise that there are farmers in her constituency in Offaly who supply Tullamore Dew, one of the most important whiskey brands we have. That product is seriously enhanced and protected by the Mercosur agreement, and the Government has acknowledged that. There is a balance that we have taken to oppose it, but it is not totally negative, as she seeks to point out. I compliment Barry Cowen MEP who has been very balanced in his approach and recognises the benefits to the whiskey industry in his county, while also recognising the difficulties for farmers.”
“It is also the economically correct thing to do for us. The threat from Russia, which we have seen actioned in Ukraine, is also a threat to other countries in that region on the eastern flank of the European Union. If anything were to happen to those countries, we would see a really serious economic shock here, and there is no question about that. We also see Russia very active in the information space and the hybrid warfare space, messing around in terms of what it might do with drones to transport links and various interconnectors, whether of information or energy. It is essential that we continue to support Ukraine. While we have been generous with regard to Ukraine, the idea that somehow we are making choices between the Irish people and the people of Ukraine, as a government here, is completely wrong.”
“It is quite shocking that Mr. Magyar was never on television during the campaign. He did not appear on radio until after he was elected. Frankly, I think a lot of the civil servants, diplomats and media are quite relieved that pressure is off them. They did not fully buy into the Orbán system, but it was forced upon them. From an Irish point of view, we will have a generous approach because a successful Hungary benefits us, and it is a country that should be successful. Irish businesses can benefit from a successful economy in Hungary because we are such an exporting country. Why do we support Ukraine? We support Ukraine for two broad reasons. One is that it is the morally and legally correct thing to do. They were invaded by Russia and they are standing up for their rights, and I think the Irish people saw that very clearly.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of Hungary. A new government has been elected, but it has not actually been appointed by the parliament yet. The party has been elected with a massive vote, but even before that, the outgoing government this morning dropped the veto on the €90 billion loan to Ukraine, and dropped the veto together with Slovakia on the 20th sanctions package. We very much welcome this. The approach that we will have to Hungary is, frankly, one that gives value to the votes of the people of Hungary. It is not that we like all of the policies of the Tisza party or anything like that. However, what the Tisza party stands for is the rule of law, liberal democracy and fundamental values. We can have a political debate within that, left and right, but essentially, what they are standing up for is a free media.”
“What is the case is that we want to make sure we have control of our borders, as member states of the Council of Europe. That is a reasonable position for governments to take. We want a firm migration policy, one that is fair to migrants and is human rights-based, but also fair to the citizens of Ireland.”
“What we are doing was announced by the Minister yesterday. We were pushing to have this agreement suspended, but it was not possible to reach an agreement. With regard to the European Convention on Human Rights and the Council of Europe, that matter is a separate from the European Council. We are strong supporters and strong activists in the Council of Europe, as a government. I am meeting the General Secretary, Mr. Berset, this week. We will continue to support the Council of Europe and all of its work. In relation to any declarations or policy positions that may be made by member states, that has been discussed by the member states. I reject the earlier comments. I know the Deputy did not say this directly, but the implication given was that, somehow, we want to torture migrants. That is not the case.”
“Ireland made its decision in the sense that the Minister, Deputy McEntee, went to Luxembourg with some other member states to achieve a suspension of this. However, it requires other member states to agree to this, and clearly that agreement was not-----”
“The digital omnibus is something the Government supports. What members of the European Parliament do is a matter for them. Just because they might not support an initial proposal does not mean they will not try to amend it and agree to it at the end. We will leave the European parliamentarians to do that job. They do an excellent job. That is one side of the democratic process, and the governments are on the other side of the democratic process in the European Union in terms of enacting this legislation. We have a very good crop of active MEPs on all of these files at the moment, and they are available to talk to anybody. They engage with us, but they engage with constituents as well. On the EU-Israel Association Agreement, this is not a decision for Ireland.”
“We have achieved a huge amount by getting through 20 packages of sanctions, including significant sanctions on the Russian economy. That work will continue.”
“Regarding Sudan, it is not that Kaja Kallas made comments yesterday. It is that the foreign Ministers discussed the issue of Sudan yesterday at the Foreign Affairs Council, and Kaja Kallas, as the high representative, spoke on behalf of all the governments. While it was discussed at the European Council recently, although not directly at the last one, it has been on the agenda of foreign Ministers on a regular basis. We share the Deputy’s concerns about Sudan, and there is no question about that. The Taoiseach has also expressed them. Regarding sanctions, today, we got Hungary and Slovakia to remove blocks on the 20th package of sanctions, and that hopefully will be enacted tomorrow. We will then work towards the 21st package of sanctions, and any extra entities or people that need to be included will be considered as part of that.”
“The Department is assessing sites and buildings and, where required, will seek expressions of interest from operators to deliver these services. Local city and county childcare committees will be supporting the development of projects, so in the first instance, community early learning and childcare operators, local authorities, developers and others who might have suitable premises and projects should contact their local committee.”
“I will bring it back to the Minister. Up to eight buildings will be selected this year for the State-led initiative. That will provide places. The level of investment will ramp up during the lifetime of the Government. The initial approach is to purchase and refurbish buildings, given that that is a faster route to delivery, while the option of building new facilities will also be considered. Services will be offered on a not-for-profit basis by third parties. Where a project is being considered without an operator already in place, the Department will run a process to identify an appropriate not-for-profit operator with capacity to operate a high-quality service, where works are required to manage a capital project.”
“The Minister also recently announced €135 million in capital investment in buildings for high-quality, accessible State-led early learning and childcare. The process will begin in 2026, with investment in buildings in what will be a groundbreaking initiative for the Government. Capital funding will be used to acquire and-or fit out the building, depending on requirements. There will be a particular focus in the new State-led facilities on providing places for one- to three-year-old children because this is where the need is greatest, with scope for these children to progress in the service until they start school. A suite of appraisal tools has been developed, including a forward-planning model, in order to select projects that align with our objectives.”
“The building blocks extension grant scheme is designed to increase capacity in the one- to three-year-old pre-ECCE age range for full daycare. Core funding partner services could apply for capital funding to physically extend their premises or, in the case of community services, to construct or purchase new premises. The scheme will deliver up to 1,500 full daycare places for one- to three-year-olds. Four applicants from Cork were approved for funding under the scheme. Following on from the success of that scheme, the Minister today launched a new capital scheme, the building blocks extension grant scheme, phase 2. The scheme will make available €10 million. It will open for applications this year and will focus on offering community and private providers funding for extensions to their existing premises.”
“The increased investment in core funding will allow for the natural growth of the sector driven both by new services joining the sector and existing services increasing their hours. A forward-planning model has been developed and will be central to the Department's plans to achieve the policy goals set out in the programme for Government to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early childhood learning and childcare system, with State-led facilities adding capacity. The model quantifies the nature and volume of different types of early learning and childcare places across the country and assesses alignment with the number of children in the corresponding age cohorts at local area level. The Government is also supporting the expansion of capacity through capital funding.”
“Based on the data available from the annual early years sector profile, the estimated number of enrolments has increased by 25% over the last three years. While the supply of places has increased, there remain indications that the demand, especially for younger children, is higher than the available supply in certain parts of the country. Living in the commuter belt myself, I know only too well the situation. The Department continues to support the ongoing development and resourcing of core funding, which has given rise to a significant expansion of places since its introduction in 2022. Now in its fourth programme year, core funding funds services based on the number of places available. Core funding provides stability to services and reduces the risk associated with opening a new service.”
“I will not forget my visits to Glanmire. The Deputy will remember that I was quite active on the issue when the Sarsfields Hurling Club suffered a disaster. In that case, we established a unique fund so that Sarsfields and other clubs got funding because of the flooding disaster. Another project in Glanmire, unfortunately, escaped my abilities to sort out although, as the Deputy said, it was not my responsibility but that of another body. I am certainly very familiar with Glanmire. I would be only too happy if I were in a position to deliver what the Deputy is looking for. I am sure the Minister, Deputy Foley, will do her best. Unfortunately, she cannot be here tonight, and I am here in her place. Improving access to quality and affordable early learning and childcare remains a key priority for the Government.”
“The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment recognises that short-term lets play an important role in the tourism sector, especially in regional and rural areas where there is limited accommodation for tourists - we get that - and where the development of accommodation at scale might not be economically viable. The Deputy mentioned properties that are not suitable for long-term letting. We know that, but the Minister is continuing to work with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to ensure clarity can be provided and a lead-in time for operators can be agreed to so that we get that balance between the needs of the people the Deputy is talking about, whom we all represent, and obviously the needs of people who are looking for long-term housing in the country.”
“That will establish a clear and coherent policy framework at national and local level. There are currently 34,000 short-term lets in Ireland, which is a huge increase since 2022. I acknowledge what the Deputy is saying about the income dependency in certain parts of the country. The Government has acknowledged that but there has been massive growth in the sector in the past three years, so it is necessary then to use regulatory measures to provide appropriate oversight and to ensure a balance between the needs the Deputy is rightfully describing and the needs of the long-term rental market.”
“I set out the position and the increase in the number of short-term lettings, even since 2022. The regulation the Deputy mentioned does impose obligations on the State to provide a register. That was passed with almost nobody voting against it in the European Parliament. Nearly 500 members of the European Parliament supported that. As set out in the A New Era for Irish Tourism document published last December, the introduction of regulatory controls for short-term letting is intended to ensure that tourism develops in a manner that recognises and complements the broader economic and social needs of local communities. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is currently finalising the national planning statement on the Planning and Development Act for short-term lets.”
“The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is finalising a national planning statement under the Planning and Development Act 2024. This will be brought to Government shortly and will provide a clear overall policy approach both at national and local authority level to enable planning authorities to determine planning applications for short-term lets across the country.”
“On 9 February last, the Cabinet committee on housing agreed planning conditions for short-term letting activity as part of a broader Government strategy to tackle the housing shortage. This agreement provided that, following the introduction of the short-term letting register, accommodation providers based in towns with a population of 20,000 or less at the last census based on the census town boundaries defined by CSO will have two years to meet planning compliance requirements, and accommodation providers based in towns with a population of more than 20,000 at the last census will need to confirm planning compliance on registration with no further lead-in period if they wish to register with Fáilte Ireland.”
“Tourism is a vital part of the Irish economy, supporting 227,000 jobs and generating €6 billion in 2024. I fully recognise concerns about the impact on rural tourism and local economies of reducing short-term let, STL, availability. Fáilte Ireland estimates that approximately 34,020 STL properties were advertised online in the State in October 2025 based on screen-scraped data from four major booking platforms. Up to 64% were listed as entire houses or apartments. This represents a 26% increase from an estimated 26,960 units in October 2022. In Cork, around 3,300 STL units were listed in October 2025, of which 63% were advertised as entire properties. This represents a 22.6% increase from an estimated 2,690 listed in October 2022.”
“In April of last year, the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment obtained Government approval for the general scheme of the short-term letting and tourism Bill. Once enacted, this Bill will provide a statutory framework for regulating the short-term letting sector, including the establishment of a national register. The register will operate in compliance with the EU Short-Term Rental Regulation (EU) 2024/1028, which comes into effect on 20 May 2026. The register will be operated by Fáilte Ireland and will commence following the enactment of the necessary legislation. While the Minister is charged with the establishment of the register, the planning elements and requirements fall under the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.”
“By working together to support innovation and embrace opportunity while ensuring that our frameworks are robust, we can be confident that Ireland will remain a driving force in Europe's capital markets going forward.”
“I agree it is essential that this directive is transposed as soon as possible. I will personally take that up with the Minister for Finance in the morning. A lot of people are starting to realise and be concerned about the issue of the deemed disposal rule on ETFs, which was also raised by the Deputy. That is something the Government could do. I have no doubt the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and the Tánaiste will work towards that. I strongly encourage people to examine ETFs on the basis that perhaps Governments will look at this in the coming years and certainly within the relevant period from now. It is something the Government wants to do, as the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, and the Tánaiste have said. Our position in Ireland at the centre of the European funds ecosystem is a privilege and responsibility.”
“On the alternative investment fund managers directive, the UCITS directive, the transposition was due to be done today but I am very sorry to say that this was not done by the Minister today. There will be a slight administrative delay. Work is continuing to finalise the draft statutory instruments. We hope the delay will be short and they will be ready for signature in the coming weeks. Everybody has to take responsibility for late transposition because it is a legal obligation on the State to transpose directives. One of my functions as Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs is to encourage Ministers to transpose directives on time. It is disappointing that this has not happened. The industry is rightly frustrated with this delay. I am grateful that Deputy Currie raised it.”
“The roadmap, which will be published in the coming months, will take into consideration developments at EU level in respect of the savings and investments union. This is a major project for the Presidency this year. As home to the second largest funds industry in the EU and the third largest in the world, lreland does not just facilitate capital flows, we help to shape the architecture of the EU's savings and investment future. This is all-the-more crucial given the current challenges faced by the EU. These funding demands will continue to grow as we look to address our common goals, including security, competitiveness, digitalisation and a just and equitable green transition. It will be our responsibility to ensure we have the tools required to meet these challenges and continue to thrive.”
“On retail investment, the Tánaiste has announced the Government's intention to introduce the legislative framework for an investment account this year. We want to make investing simpler, clearer and more accessible for ordinary people and to help their hard-earned money work harder for them over time. The aim is to legislate this year to allow accounts to be offered next year. In budget 2026 we provided for a reduction in the rate of taxation on returns from Irish and equivalent investment funds and Irish and certain foreign life assurance policies from 41% to 38%. This took effect from 1 January this year. In addition, in the same budget we committed to publish a roadmap in 2026, setting out the intended approach to simplify and adapt the tax framework to encourage retail investment.”
“This includes a full breakdown of the recommendations and those responsible for their implementation. Of the 42 recommendations, the most substantive were categorised into four cohorts. The first was to grow exchange-traded funds, ETFs; the second was to grow private assets; the third was to grow retail investment; and the fourth was to address the risks and enhance transparency in structured finance. The recommendations to grow ETFs have been delivered by the Central Bank. The recommendations to grow private assets involve legislative, regulatory and tax changes. These are on track for completion this year. There is ongoing engagement in train with the industry and the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment on changes sought to the Limited Partnerships Act.”