Ms Una Fitzpatrick:

I thank the Deputy for his questions. I will try to cover one or two of them and will ask my colleague, Mr. O'Donovan, to cover the third.

The skills, research and innovation base and regulatory excellence comprise a broad enough category, but I suppose it is all linked. I apologise to Deputy Bruton, who raised the issue of regulatory capacity but whose question I did not answer sufficiently. The level and amount of tech regulation at European and Irish levels is ever increasing and is predicted to only go in one direction. We have called for yearly increases in the resources of the DPC in order to ensure they are adequate. Once the resourcing level is adequate, industry will be satisfied.

Regarding the new media commission, coimisiún na meán, the next 12 months in that space will be important for Ireland. How we implement the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act will see the eyes of Europe, if not the world, on Ireland. The role of the digital services co-ordinator, which is in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment but will sit within coimisiún na meán and be co-ordinated by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, will be an interesting dynamic, given that there will be two Departments with roles in one regulator. Ensuring that this system runs smoothly and cohesively will be important from the industry's perspective. It has to happen at pace. A new regulator has to be established and staffed. It is positive that the regulator will be hiring more than 70 roles next January. That is the level of activity that needs to happen, with a swift upskilling and absorption of people. Obviously, personnel will move over from what was formerly the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland into coimisiún na meán, and it is important that there be cohesiveness in that. The major ramping up of the regulator's formation will be of particular importance.

Regarding SME incentives, it would be useful to have a consultation on the concept of another agency. I do not know that my membership is necessarily calling for that. My members get good support from Enterprise Ireland. Some companies have grown into large organisations, moved beyond being start-ups, including high-potential start-ups, and reached a critical point. Perhaps they have crossed the threshold from being Enterprise Ireland clients to being IDA Ireland clients and are establishing offices worldwide and attracting global investment back to Ireland. The Deputy's proposition is interesting. A consultation with wider industry as well as practitioners would be useful for an informed discussion on how it would work.

I will hand over to Mr. O'Donovan for the question on procurement and the NTF, although it is a matter close to my heart. We in Technology Ireland have done a great deal of work on cloud procurement. The procurement of cloud at Government level is of particular importance to us, not only from the point of view of better delivery of public services in terms of efficiencies, but also the ability of smaller companies and other companies that are based in Ireland to engage with a framework for providing services. Currently, this procurement is happening ad hocand there is no overall framework. Thankfully, a consultation has been announced around the establishment of a cloud framework at Government level. We are happy to see this positive development.