Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 3 to 6, inclusive, together.

The Government is developing a new national digital strategy to help Ireland maximise the economic and societal benefits from digitalisation. This is a commitment in the Action Plan for Jobs 2018. The strategy is being led as a shared effort by the Department of the Taoiseach, the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation and the office of the chief information officer in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. An interdepartmental group, which includes representatives from all Departments, is also assisting the development of the strategy. This approach reflects the broad spread of policy areas impacted by digitalisation.

In July, the Government agreed a framework for the national digital strategy, which reflected preliminary consultations with civic society, business representatives, education providers and academics. A wider public consultation exercise to allow citizens to influence the development of the strategy started on Monday, 22 October, and closed last Friday, 23 November. This allowed people to submit their views online, by email or by post. More than 300 responses were received and the submissions are now being analysed. In parallel, there is ongoing consultation with stakeholders and experts to inform development of the strategy.

It is intended that the new national digital strategy will set out Ireland's vision and ambition in the fast-changing digital world as well as specific initiatives in areas such as eGovernment, enterprise policy, digital inclusion, access and regulation. Importantly, it will also position Ireland internationally and within the European Union, where we are active supporters of the digital Single Market.

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