Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As I outlined, the Government is fully committed to the highest standards of data protection being in place for the benefit of Irish and other EU citizens. The Minister, Deputy McEntee, supports the entitlement of people across the EU to exercise their rights of data protection. However, the independence of our courts and the European Court of Justice must be respected, as must the independence of the DPC. I take on board the point made by the Deputy regarding the funding of the DPC but it does not detract from its independence. All Members accept that it is independent.

Although the Minister appreciates that the Court of Justice decision to strike down the privacy shield is a matter of serious concern for Irish and European businesses that transfer data to the US, she welcomes the court's findings which uphold SCCs. She is confident that the issues arising from the judgment can be resolved by working in conjunction with our EU partners. In so doing, the Government will endeavour to arrive at practical solutions. I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue and for his very helpful comments on the matter.

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