Mr. Mark Malone:

The Senator mentioned the example of a leaflet distributed in Ballymun. It actually was not distributed in Ballymun but it was posted on Facebook that the leaflet was distributed in Ballymun. As for his part of the strategy of far-right organising, to a large degree it is hard to separate it out from a very particular type of digital marketing. In some ways, when we have what we have seen over recent years, certainly in the period of the global pandemic, when many people moved online, there is a generalised worry and confusion about an ability to track information. To a large degree, it does not take a lot of money to move stuff around online. There is a communication architecture there between the social media platforms. As we mentioned earlier, there are a very small number of actors that are quite conversant with digital marketing and with how to generate content. These tactics are seen internationally. They are not necessarily unique to Ireland per seat all.

As for that element of funding, it is quite difficult to track funding. It is not immediately apparent where funding comes through but we are certainly seeing fundraising attempts across a range of platforms, from GoFundMe to payment processors working on third-party websites, to political organisation websites, far-right influencers, own brands selling T-shirts and cups and mugs and the similar kind of brand awareness or brand creation that would be seen in other spaces.

To answer the question directly, it is quite difficult to tell what amounts of money are there. It is very clear, however, with the small number of individuals and micro organisations that are actively involved, the momentum and the imperative to create new content in order to create new donations and new eyes, that there is an in-built cycle that requires and that is shaped by ever-increasing donations, perhaps, as well. While that does not give the Senator a very clear answer in terms of the numbers, certainly that is what we are seeing in terms of the dynamics.