Written Answers Nos. 145-156
145. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the funding that was provided by county from his Department in 2022, broken down by project in tabular form. [62872/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraIDA Ireland operates a variety of Grant Programmes including but not restricted to Capital, Employment, RD&I and Training supports. Each year the agency pays grants of approximately €105m in respect of investment programmes from new and existing client within its portfolio. In 2022 the agency continued to support the Covid-19 Medicinal Products Scheme with grants payments to date of €1,750,904, this figure is not currently available by County. There have been no payments made to date in 2022 under the Covid-19 Recovery Scheme in Sustainability and Digitalisation.
Detailed information relating to IDA Ireland grant payments made in 2022 by county and company will be available in Q1, 2023.
The data in Table 1 below refers to Enterprise Ireland payments made up to 12th December 2022.
The data in Table 2 refers to LEO payments made in 2022.
146. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment when he will make regulations under section 7 of the Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act 1996, in view of the migration of more than 100 European Works Councils to Ireland following Brexit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62875/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraSection 7 of the Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act 1996, provides that Regulations may be made as are necessary for the purpose of giving effect to the Act and in particular, in relation to:
1. expenses to be borne by the central managements in relation to undertakings and groups of undertakings.
2. the appointment of an arbitrator for the purposes of section 20 of the Act and the terms and conditions to which such an appointment shall be subject.
3. the powers and procedures of arbitrators, and the conduct of arbitration proceedings, under sections 20 and 21 of the Act, and
4. in relation to a European Works Council, the funding by central managements of the expenses of the operation of Special Negotiating Bodies, European Works Councils, European Employees' Fora or information and consultation procedures.
Regulations under the Act may contain such incidental, supplementary, and consequential provisions as appear to be expedient for any purpose of the Act. The Act provides that every Regulation made shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as practicable after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the Regulation is passed by either House, then the Regulation shall be annulled.
The introduction of Regulations under section 7 will be considered as required in accordance with the provisions of the Act.
147. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on the concerns expressed by the European Commission and an organisation (details supplied) regarding the adequacy of Ireland's transposition of Directive 2009/38/EC; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62876/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act 1996 (TICEA), No. 20 of 1996, transposed EU Directive 94/45/EC into Irish law.
That Directive was recast by Directive 2009/38/EC to which effect was given by European Communities (Transnational Information and Consultation of Employees Act 1996) (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (S.I. No. 380 of 2011).
The Act provides for the establishment of a European Works Council (EWC) or other mechanisms in community-scale undertakings and community-scale groups of undertakings for the purposes of informing and consulting employees.
The European Commission raised a query on foot of a complaint it had received alleging non-conformity of Irish legislation with Directive 2009/38/EC on European Works Councils. My Department has replied to the queries raised. However, as the process is incomplete it is not appropriate for me to comment further at this time.
My department is engaging with the European Commission on foot of the complaint received.
The general provisions of the Irish Regulation follow the provisions of Directive 2009/38/EC faithfully providing mechanisms for dispute resolution. However, should any inadequacies be identified, they will be addressed in due course.
148. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he has discussed with Enterprise Ireland the way to stimulate the establishment of indigenous businesses in the renewable energy supply chain through a national renewable energy business accelerator programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [62962/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department, together with Enterprise Ireland, are actively engaged in building capacity in the indigenous sector to access supply chain opportunities in renewable energy and sustainability.
The new Smart Regional Enterprise Innovation Scheme (SREIS fund), which is part-funded through the ERDF, will build on existing initiatives and support new collaborative and innovative regional projects from 2023. This activity will align with the recommendations of the nine Regional Enterprise Plans and Ireland’s Smart Specialisation Strategy around digitalisation and green transformation goals for industry.
The Offshore Wind industry has a significant regional employment potential. Enterprise Ireland has been working with Irish SMEs to develop their capability in the offshore wind sector. It has developed an Irish offshore wind supply chain cluster (The Gael Offshore Network) which consists of over 65 Irish companies. These companies provide a range of products, services, and skillsets appropriate to the offshore wind industry including environmental and geotechnical Consultancy, seabed surveys, and operations and maintenance services.
Enterprise Ireland is primarily focused on helping Irish SMEs to bring this capability to export markets. For example, by facilitating Irish SMEs entry into the UK offshore wind industry, EI is helping these companies to build the appropriate capability and offerings to industry that not only operates in the UK and globally, but which are also going to be major stakeholders in the Irish offshore wind sector.
The Interim Report of Shannon Estuary Economic Taskforce which was launched on 10 December last has also assessed the potential for renewable energy projects and how the Region can play a leading role in the switch to renewable energy and more climate friendly ways of living and doing business. The taskforce proposes that the Estuary would also become a hub for sustainable transport technologies and a western “Digital Gateway” to Europe. It also proposes significant investment in the ports at Foynes and Moneypoint, a new auction for floating wind generation in 2024 and identifying industrial sites for clean energy industries like hydrogen.
149. Deputy Neale Richmond asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he will report on Ireland's cybersecurity infrastructure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57654/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra150. Deputy Alan Farrell asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his views on Ireland’s cybersecurity capabilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57455/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra152. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he will report on Ireland's cybersecurity infrastructure. [58446/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 149, 150 and 152 together.
Recognising the strategic importance of cyber security for the resilience and integrity of critical infrastructure and services, the Government has prioritised investment in Ireland’s cybersecurity, most notably in its investment in the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). The NCSC plays an important role in providing advice and guidance to public bodies and critical infrastructure, monitoring and analysing cyber security threats and coordinating the response to major cyber security incidents. The NCSC works closely with its counterparts in the EU Member States as well as the UK, US and other jurisdictions.
I am pleased to report that progress is being made across a range of measures agreed by Government last year. There has been a particular focus on recruitment. The staffing complement at the NCSC continues to grow towards the Government's target of 70 by the end of 2024 with 42 whole time equivalent staff in the NCSC in early December. The increased resources have enabled the NCSC to provide an enhanced service to its constituents including through the work of the NCSC Engagement Team in supporting public bodies, essential services and important industry sectors.Work is proceeding well on the development of a dedicated HQ facility for the NCSC.
There will be an Increase in the NCSC’s ability to actively detect and defeat cyber threats targeting critical infrastructure and networks through a variety of means, including the continued development of the NCSC’s Sensor network across the systems of public bodies, critical infrastructure, and other relevant constituents, underpinned by clear legal powers. The NCSC has also recently completed a Technical Strategy, setting out how the organisation will develop in the coming years.The ability of the NCSC to monitor and respond to incidents will be developed through the ongoing evolution of the Joint Security Operations Centre (JSOC), and expanded analytical and reporting capabilities.
My Department is also progressing the drafting of legislation to provide the NCSC with a clear statutory mandate and legal authority.
151. Deputy Ciarán Cannon asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the progress that his Department has specifically made with regard to delivering the National Broadband Plan. [56456/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe National Broadband Plan (NBP) state led intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) under a contract to roll out a high speed and future proofed broadband network within the intervention area which covers 1.1 million people living and working in over 560,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along with some 679 schools.
There are over 2.47 million premises in the country of which:
- Over 564,00 (22.8%) are within the AMBER area which will be provided with high speed broadband through the State led Intervention;
- Over 1.9 million (77.2%) premises are within the BLUE area which represents those areas where commercial providers are either currently delivering or have plans to deliver high speed broadband services.
I am advised by NBI that, as of 02 December 2022, over 112,200 premises can order or pre-order a high-speed broadband connection across 25 counties, with over 101,700 premises passed across 25 counties and available for immediate connection. Construction is underway across 26 counties demonstrating that the project is reaching scale. To date, the level of connections is increasing on a daily basis and is exceeding projections.
Strategic Connection Points (SCPs) are a key element of the NBP providing high speed broadband in every county in advance of the roll out of the fibre to the home network. As of 02 December 2022, 823 SCP sites (280 Broadband Connection Points, which are publicly accessible sites, and 543 schools) have been installed and the high-speed broadband service will be switched on in these locations through service provider contracts managed by the Department of Rural and Community Development for BCPs and the Department of Education for school SCPs. My Department continues to work with the Department of Education to prioritise schools with no high-speed broadband, within the Intervention Area. Further details are available on the NBI website at nbi.ie/primary-schools-list/.
Eir has said it will roll out fibre to a further 1.6 million premises, bringing their fibre deployment to some 1.9 million premises. SIRO is currently completing the first phase of its fibre deployment and to date has passed more than 430,000 premises with gigabit services and it has recently announced plans to extend its network to an additional 320,000 premises. Virgin Media is offering 250Mbps as a standard offering with 500Mbps and 1Gbps available to many of their customers across the more than 1 million premises that they cover. Many other network operators and telecom service providers across the State also continue to invest in their networks.
153. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the extent to which he has had further dialogue with his colleagues across Europe, with particular reference to achieving targets on emissions. [55616/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraClimate change, is a trans-boundary challenge, that can only be addressed through committed ambition and effective multilateral cooperation at an international level. On the international stage, the European Union (EU), with the support of its Member States, plays a leadership role on climate matters and has shown great unity during the current energy crisis.Member States have highlighted that global ambition must increase substantially to keep the 1.5°C objective in line with the Paris Agreement. As such, EU governments have already agreed to accelerate Europe’s decarbonisation and advance comprehensive and ambitious climate and energy policy, including committing to more ambitious greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets – at least 55% by 2030 (relative to 1990 levels) and carbon neutrality no later than 2050. The EU Green Deal and associated Fit for 55 package of proposals represent key tools in this effort. Ireland fully supports the increased ambition under the Fit for 55 Package and has been working with the Commission, Council Presidency and Member States to progress the adoption of the Package in a way that seeks to balance cost-effectiveness, fairness and solidarity across Member States.Ireland continues to proactively engage in the ongoing negotiations. I recently held bilateral engagements with EU colleagues at COP27 and officials in my Department have also been engaging with Member States through EU Working Groups in order to ensure that we collectively realise the climate ambition that these proposals represent.Ireland favours a quick adoption of the Fit for 55 Package. We are pleased with the good progress to date and are supporting the ongoing trilogues to finalise these proposals.
154. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if the Government clawbacks in respect of the National Broadband Plan will not be diminished as a result of NBI’s interest in X3T and the expectation from its shareholders; if he has engaged with NBI regarding its interest in the company; and if he is satisfied that no risk arises in respect of his interests in the National Broadband Plan as a result of the establishment of the company. [62842/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra155. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if NBI is subject to public procurement rules; the way in which services provided to NBI by a company (details supplied) are governed and managed. [62843/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra156. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if NBI sought permission to establish a spin-out company named (details supplied) from the NBI; and if his Department completed a due diligence process in relation to the company. [62844/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 154 to 156, inclusive, together.
I understand that the company referred to in the Question is a separate commercial entity from NBI. Any queries in relation to the referred company and any services it may provide to NBI should be directed to its owners and/or NBI.
There has been no request for approval from NBI in relation to the named company. Should NBI seek any relevant approval it will be processed in line with the requirements of the NBP Contract.
