Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with all of that. A high level interdepartmental group chaired by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and including senior representatives from the Department of Defence and the Defence Forces is finalising a draft national cybersecurity strategy that will focus on improving cybersecurity capabilities in Ireland. The draft strategy will be published this year by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources in consultation with other key departments and agencies. This will provide a framework within which the future contribution of the Defence Forces will be assessed.

The Deputy is right that this is a threat that needs a comprehensive response from Government. The only issue is which Department should be the lead. To date the decision has been that the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources should be the lead Department for cybersecurity but that Department works with other Departments and we in the Department of Defence have a significant input into the strategy, along with the Defence Forces, because we have the necessary capacity. The Deputy needs to wait to see the detail of the cybersecurity strategy and how it will function. He will see that the Government is working on a complete response to the issue.

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