Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)

I just do not accept that we are asking anyone to gut the AI Act or GDPR. The whole simplification agenda is designed to cut red tape and unnecessary bureaucracy that are costing companies a lot of money and, quite frankly, jobs in all of our constituencies. At the same time, however, it will protect basic rights that we and the European Union have fought hard for and developed, such as the areas of workers’ rights, data privacy, equality and environmental protections. These areas are absolutely central to what the European Union is about. The simplification agenda is not in contradiction to that. What European leaders agreed to at the European Council is that "... the EU will continue to foster human-centric technological solutions that protect individuals and their data, and safeguard digital accountability, transparency and societal resilience. The European Council stresses the importance of protecting minors ...". This is what the European Union and the leaders agreed to do. That is what will happen through the simplification process. We do not want unnecessary red tape on companies. That is what the prime ministers, the Taoiseach and all of them agreed on. What the Deputy is saying is not a reflection of what the prime ministers agreed at the European Council.

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