Pauline O'Reilly (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank all of our guests today. I have a few specific questions.

On the issue of the levy and the tax, ultimately, the end user of the data service would be paying for that. Therefore, I would have a concern there around a tax for which ordinary people will end up footing the bill. However, social responsibility comes into it. Both Dr. Bresnihan and Dr. Carton have spoken about that social element and the need to educate the public in relation to the use of data. I think there has been some conflation here in referring to plastics and the overconsumption of plastics. As an environmentalist, it is important to point out that it is something very different from data. Plastics are made from fossil fuels. Ultimately, they do not break down, so they have a cost at both ends, whereas it seems to me that the real issue around data centres is where the energy for those centres is coming from, and whether we can keep pace with the energy demand.

I ask for the witnesses' views on the following matters.

In an ideal world, we could ensure the energy was renewable, and perhaps we could look at some of the other concerns around water, as mentioned by Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan, such as rainwater harvesting. We should be doing that on a grand scale across the island anyway. If we address those issues, the concerns would not be there to the same extent.

I am from the west of Ireland and I know Senator Dooley and Deputy Leddin are from there as well. What we have is a difficulty with people not wanting to produce energy in the west because of the lack of population. We must look at bringing in industry that can promote and support energy in order to serve the wider population. Is there a place for that and how is it envisaged that this can be achieved? Yesterday, Bord na Móna announced an energy park for the midlands. It is a co-location of renewable energy with business. I presume that business will comprise heavy energy users in order to do exactly as I have described and ensure energy can be created on the basis that there is a consumer in business and it can be distributed to the wider community as well.

I have had a concern for a long time around trade deals and negotiations, particularly from the European Union perspective and trade deals being a European competency. Much of the early negotiations for trade deals happen before they are discussed by MEPs or come before the European Parliament for decision. Does Dr. Tienhaara have any thoughts about how we can change that to be more transparent? To be fair, anything that comes before an investor-state dispute settlement process is based on the terms of the individual contract and trade deals. There is not a widespread ability to make determinations outside those contracts. The wording in the trade deals is important.