Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

On UK legislation and the point in the witnesses' submission, the UK amendment refers to high privacy settings being switched on by default. I need an explanation as to how that would work in practical terms. Ireland is one of the most innovative countries in the world and nine out of the top ten "born on the Internet" companies are here. Their EMEA, European, Middle East and Asian, headquarters are operating out of Dublin. We have the Insight Centre, a Science Foundation Ireland funded body. We are investing significantly in big data analytics. The innovation the witnesses are talking about to crack that code could be done on the island of Ireland. We have the scientific personnel and the excellence in science to be able to do it. I want to get the witnesses' perspective on the fear I have. The top companies I referred to have commercial sensitivities and are looking for market share. My fear is that if one tries to legislate for or create the innovations to block and filter access, Mr. Facebook, CEO, or Ms Facebook, CEO, and others may ring the Taoiseach to say they do not like what we are doing in Ireland where they have made a solid commitment to their investments. The threat of pulling out could be used to push back.