Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have the NIS compliance guidelines in front of me. What was the level of engagement? People are very sensitive regarding any major faults in the electricity sector, for example, the Boeing crashes and various other events that have happened such as what is happening with electricity supply in Venezuela and the powerful and central role IT systems play in the delivery of essential services, particularly health. Can the Minister tell me when he will designate operators of essential services? Who are they? Will there be different sectoral requirements in energy, health and finance compared to other areas? The computer security incident response team, CSIRT, is in the Minister's Department. Why has he designated his Department and himself as the regulators of this vast area that is so central to our lives? Is it intended to introduce legislation in the House so that we get an opportunity to discuss all aspects of cybersecurity and to decide whether or not we need a fully independent regulator? There are so many elements to this, for example, the Internet of things and block chain technology in finance. Many people are very interested in technology and wonder if we are being incredibly lethargic in this area.

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