Joint Committee on Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht to discuss Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill 2020 with social media companies

The meeting at 12.30pm in Committee Room 3 of Leinster House will hear from:

·         Representatives from Facebook Ireland;

·         Representatives from Twitter; and

·         Representatives from Tik Tok.

Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Niamh Smyth said: “As the Committee continues pre-legislative scrutiny of this comprehensive and important Bill, we look forward to hearing the views of the social media companies. We are particularly interested in hearing their contributions on the proposal to establish a Media Commission to oversee the new regulatory framework for online safety, including the appointment of an Online Safety Commissioner. Members are also interested in hearing their views on other elements of the Bill, such as on-demand services.”

The General Scheme of the Bill was published in December 2020 by the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and consists of three general themes:

·         Parts 2 and 3: The establishment of the Media Commission and dissolution of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland;

·         Part 4: Online Safety; and

·         Parts 5 and 6: On-Demand Audiovisual Services and miscellaneous provisions regarding the transposition of the EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive.

The Joint Committee on Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht has 14 Members, nine from the Dáil and five from the Seanad.

The meeting in Committee Room 3 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.