Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 July 2021
41. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of short-term and long-term jobs created from each existing data centre in Ireland in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40577/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment does not collect or store the type of detailed information requested on data centre location and employment by data centre. While not all data centres are operated by multi-national firms, IDA Ireland has further advised me that it does not maintain a register of data centres.
In terms of full-time permanent employment in the data centres themselves, it is estimated that each data centre requires between 30 and 50 well paid and secure direct jobs in roles such as management, IT and systems engineers, mechanical and electrical maintenance and repair management. However around 20,000 direct jobs in the Irish economy are supported by those who operate large data centre infrastructure here. The wider technology sector in Ireland employs in excess of 150,000 people.
Data centres are an increasingly important part of the digital and communications sectors and are core infrastructure in remote working and our increasingly digital services economy. Data centres facilitate critical functions such as e-commerce, payroll processing, securities transactions, banking, fraud protection, telecommunications, content streaming, and disaster recovery services. Indeed, the important economic and societal role of data services, such as, video calls, streaming services, and other remote work technology has become ever more apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data centres securely store and manage the data which keeps much of our information-based economy and society moving.
