Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Táim sásta a bheith anseo chun an cheist thar a bheith tábhachtach seo a phlé. Mar Aire Cultúir, Cumarsáide agus Spóirt, is í an tsábháilteacht ar líne, go háirithe do leanaí agus daoine óga, an chloch is mó ar mo phaidrín. Dála go leor eile sa Teach seo, is tuismitheoir mé mar aon le polaiteoir. Mar sin, tá sábháilteacht ar líne tábhachtach domsa mar athair.

I am pleased to be here this afternoon to discuss this very important issue. As Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, online safety, in particular for children and young people, is a top priority for me. However, like many others in the House, I am a parent as well as a politician, so online safety is even important to me as a father.

Like so many other important public policy issues that we discuss in this House, online safety is a complex issue. If we take a step back and think of the technological advances we have made in the past 20 years, we can see how the Internet and digitalisation have helped to improve our lives. We can avail of a range of Government services online in a convenient and secure fashion. Instead of having to take a day off work to renew a passport, we can do it online from the comfort of our homes.

We can apply online for social welfare entitlements and get a response very quickly.

As part of that technological leap forward, the advent of social media means, on the positive side, that we are connected as a community and as a nation as never before. We can both teach others and learn from them in ways that were unfathomable for previous generations. However, there are also risks and we need to constantly bear in mind the need for online safety, particularly when it comes to our children.

As many Members of the House of a certain age might be able to say, we are digital immigrants. On the other hand, our children are digital natives. Social media, with everything it brings, is part of their lives. So, it is essential that we make sure that children do not see illegal, harmful or age-inappropriate content while being able to safely avail of all the benefits of the online world.

The regulation of online platforms has undergone a transformation in recent years as a result of groundbreaking legislation, notably the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act 2022 - the OSMR Act - which underpinned the establishment of Coimisiún na Meán and provided the legislative basis for the online safety code. In addition to an coimisiún’s role as media regulator, it now implements a range of online safety legislation from across the Government. This new online safety framework consists of three main elements: the aforementioned OSMR Act, which transposed the audiovisual media services directive; the EU Digital Services Act, DSA, under which an coimisiún is Ireland’s digital services co-ordinator, and the EU terrorist content online regulation, for which Coimisiún na Meán is also a competent authority on supervision and enforcement. This framework equips an coimisiún with the tools required to regulate online services, to supervise compliance and to enforce it as necessary, including by way of financial sanctions, should they be required.

At this juncture, it is important to state that the Government provided for Coimisiún na Meán to be largely self-sufficient in terms of resourcing. An coimisiún levies the entities it regulates and the income from these levies enables it to deliver on its strategic objectives. However, from the beginning, the Government came forward with resources to enable an coimisiún to hit the ground running, providing more than €10 million for the purpose from the outset. That enabled an coimisiún to kickstart recruitment. From a starting point of 40 staff, it now has over 260. I have secured sanction for it to recruit over 300 staff and I will work to ensure that its staffing level continues to grow as additional functions are assigned to it. This puts Coimisiún na Meán in the big league when it comes to resources and staffing and the levy provision enables it to keep pace with developments.

In terms of significant developments in the framework, it is important to acknowledge the full application in July of this year of Ireland’s online safety code. To allow for the implementation of the code, it was rolled out in two parts. Part A, which has general obligations, has applied since November 2024. Under Part A, designated platforms must provide for protections for minors from content that may impair physical, mental or moral development, and for the general public from content that incites hatred or violence or is racist or xenophobic.

The second part - Part B - has applied since July 2025 and has more specific obligations, such as prohibiting the uploading or sharing of harmful content on their services, including cyberbullying, promoting self-harm or suicide, and promoting eating or feeding disorders, as well as incitement to hatred or violence, terrorism, child sex abuse material, racism and xenophobia. Part B requires the use of age assurance to prevent children from encountering pornography or gratuitous violence online and the provision of parental controls for content that may impair the physical, mental, or moral development of children under the age of 16.

It is for the regulated platforms to demonstrate that they have the correct safety measures in place to prevent illegal or harmful content being shown. The code also makes it clear that it is up to the designated services to ensure that the age assurance methods they are using are robust and privacy protecting. Self-declaration of age is no longer an acceptable form of age verification. A failure to address these requirements adequately can lead to significant financial sanctions and continued non-compliance can lead to criminal sanctions for senior management. Coimisiún na Meán is responsible for enforcing compliance with the code and fines for non-compliance can reach up to €20 million or 10% of annual turnover, whichever is the higher.

I would note that the online safety code has been and is being challenged in the courts, but it is being successfully defended by Coimisiún na Meán. This is a tribute to the good work of the commission in developing the code but also shows that certain platforms are vigorous in seeking to test its integrity.

The DSA has applied since February 2024. It is a harmonised EU-wide law that establishes a framework for regulating illegal content. Under the DSA, the European Commission is the primary regulator for the very large online platforms, such as X, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, and the very large search engines such as Google. The European Commission operates with the assistance of a digital services co-ordinator in each member state. In Ireland, that is Coimisiún na Meán.

As provided for in the DSA, once they are made aware of illegal content on their platforms, platforms must act to remove it or be held responsible. More generally, the framework obliges them to take steps to minimise the availability of harmful, inappropriate or illegal content, especially if it could be encountered by children.

In terms of progress on implementing the DSA, Coimisiún na Meán announced last month that it was investigating the platform X for possible non-compliance with the DSA in respect of how it deals with complaints. Last week, it announced two further investigations - of LinkedIn and TikTok - in relation to how they deal with complaints. Last week, the European Commission fined X a total of €120 million for failure to fulfil certain transparency obligations under the DSA. I would add that I understand the European Commission investigated TikTok for similar suspected breaches and that that investigation concluded with TikTok making necessary changes and the European Commission standing down its investigation. This demonstrates the commitment of the regulators, nationally and at EU level, to supervising and enforcing online safety frameworks but more importantly, getting results in terms of the changes that improve safety.

In July, the European Commission published guidelines on protection of minors under Article 28 of the DSA. These guidelines outline recommendations to strengthen online safety for children in EU member states. In particular, the guidelines set out a non-exhaustive list of proportionate and appropriate measures to protect children from online risks such as harmful content, problematic and addictive behaviours, cyberbullying and harmful commercial practices. Among other things, the guidelines recommend the use of effective age assurance methods to restrict access to adult-only content.

In terms of encountering content, we know that algorithms and recommender systems can have harmful impacts on users, especially children. From a regulatory perspective, these issues are addressed in the DSA. In that regard, the European Commission is currently investigating TikTok and Meta related in part to their recommender systems and the impact of those on children and young people.

Members will be aware of serious issues with people, including our elected representatives, being on the receiving end of appalling abuse and intimidatory behaviour. It is essential that people report such incidents to platforms in the first instance but then to Coimisiún na Meán if they do not receive a satisfactory response on appeal. If anyone feels unsafe, they should also report it to An Garda Síochána. We have seen in recent times how the Garda has brought perpetrators of such abuse to justice. However, it is clear that there is an onus on the platforms to comply with regulatory obligations and to minimise the availability of this harmful content.

I know that the Oireachtas established its task force on safe participation in political life and that Coimisiún na Meán participated in the work. The commission published research earlier this year outlining the experiences of election candidates in the local elections of 2024. The report set out a number of commitments that the commission undertook to fulfil in order to help to make life online safer for election candidates and politicians.

The report correctly identifies a degree of fatalism among people about the value of reporting harmful online content, but I still encourage everybody to report inappropriate, harmful or illegal content to the relevant platform and then to Coimisiún na Meán if the response is unsatisfactory. The commission would say that having a deeper evidence base, including from information gleaned from complaints, gives it the grounds to take action against platforms suspected of not fulfilling their obligations. The investigations announced by the commission recently, which focus on how platforms deal with complaints, illustrates clearly how seriously it takes its responsibilities.

Obviously, awareness is critical here and the commission is taking action with a two-pronged awareness campaign now running across a range of platforms, aimed at children on the one hand and parents on the other. In 2024, Coimisiún na Meán ran the "Spot it, Flag it, Stop it" campaign to help people understand what constitutes illegal content online and provide guidance about how to report it. Coimisiún na Meán also developed educational resources for post-primary schools that advised students, parents and teachers of their rights under the online safety framework. These educational resources were produced with the support of the Irish Internet Safety Awareness Centre, better known as Webwise, and include both junior and senior cycle lesson plans, teacher guides and downloadable posters and infographics. The resources were shared with every post-primary school in the country. Recently, Coimisiún na Meán supported and part-funded the development of Webwise’s new switched on digital citizenship education programme for fifth and sixth classes.

Additionally, in July of this year the commission launched a nationwide advertising campaign in cinemas focused on the rights of users online and the continued importance of reporting illegal or harmful content to online platforms, in both Irish and English. The cinema campaign has reached more than 1.4 million cinema-goers. Coimisiún na Meán has now launched a further significant awareness campaign, with the support of the Department of Health. It is in two parts, the first of which is for young people and is focused on individual rights and the online safety framework. It is running across social media and digital platforms and will help young people understand why reporting is important through a series of humorous videos. The second element is a campaign for parents, which is running across radio, social and digital. This campaign will help parents identify the types of harmful content that can be reported and will highlight the importance of reporting in order to help hold platforms to account. These will be supported by extensive new website resources, including guides on how to report and the parents' information pack.

This demonstrates the cross-cutting nature of online safety. The Department of Education and Youth is supporting online safety in schools through curriculum supports, digital citizenship initiatives and the provision of funding for mobile phone storage solutions. The Department of Health will publish tomorrow the final report of the online health task force which sets out a range of recommendations to improve online safety from a public health perspective. I welcome the work undertaken by both Departments and will continue to work with them and across Government to ensure we progress online safety for the benefit of all.

On children’s online safety, I cannot overstate how important I think age verification is. It is quite clear robust age verification is a basic requirement. It is a vital part of the picture in terms of providing proof that children are the age they claim to be and to ensure they are not exposed to harmful or illegal content. I am working across Government and with all the stakeholders to ensure children and young people can be safe from harmful or illegal content online, in particular through a new Government measure to support age verification. I am seeking the inclusion of a commitment to this effect in the Government’s updated national digital strategy, which will be published shortly. In addressing age verification we must seek to ensure there are trustworthy systems in place that are interoperable and respect users' rights, including data protection rights. To that end, officials in the Department are continuing to work with the Government's Chief Information Officer and their office to look at more practical technical solutions to age verification using MyGovID as part of the Government's digital wallet. The online safety code requires platforms to have robust age verification in place to protect children from content that is inappropriate for them, such as pornography, and there is no doubt the provision of a Government-backed, robust, zero-knowledge, privacy-securing option is an important step forward and one I hope will have the support of all parties in the House. The aim is to commence an extensive pilot to test the technology, starting in quarter 1 of next year and we will be looking for volunteers from the public to assist with this. I will also be writing to platforms in the coming weeks to invite them to participate in the pilot and I expect those that are committed to online safety will be happy to engage. I will also be inviting them to a stakeholder consultation after Christmas.

Notwithstanding the work we are doing on age verification, parents and families have a role to play by ensuring they have the necessary conversations with their children about their lives online. It is important parents feel empowered to address these questions together and there are a wide range of resources online, including from the Department of education, but also from other parts of civil society organisations in the sector, which are designed to help parents and families support children to get the best out of their online experiences. In that context, Members will no doubt be aware European Union member states are examining the question of prohibiting access by children and young people to social media platforms; the so-called "digital age of majority". Australia is implementing such a measure and other jurisdictions are considering similar measures. In Australia, from today age-restricted social media platforms will have to take reasonable steps to prevent Australians under the age of 16 from creating or keeping an account. The platforms that are now age-restricted are Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X and YouTube. Alongside this, just last week Coimisiún na Meán signed a memorandum of understanding with the Australian eSafety Commissioner. The objective of the collaboration is to increase expertise in the area of digital regulation and online safety through exchange of information, data, good practices, methodologies and information about technical systems and tools. I should add I met representatives of the Australian Government on this matter recently.

Ireland is considering its approach to the digital age of majority. Any decision would be better taken by the EU and its member states together. In that regard it is important to note the President of the European Commission Ursula van der Leyen announced she would establish an expert panel to examine the issue, including the implementation of Australia’s social media age-restriction policy and advise her on the best approach for Europe in taking next steps on social media regulation in a report by the end of the year. I recognise that there are currently different perspectives across the European Union as to whether there should be an age of digital majority, and if there were such an age, what age it should be and whether it should be an outright ban or an age restriction unless there is parental consent. In considering this, it is important we include the voice of our young people and have regard to their rights while protecting them from harm. It is also important any such measures comply with the DSA as it is an EU regulation that requires maximum harmonisation for all EU member states, including Ireland.

Online safety, particularly for children and young people, will be a priority for me during Ireland’s Presidency of the European Union. Ireland will bring forward Council conclusions on online safety for negotiation and agreement by the member states. Ireland will hold a high-level conference on online safety in Dublin in September 2026, the outcome of which will feed into the work of the Presidency. In addition, a youth forum will be convened in advance of the Presidency to engage directly with children and young people in relation to online safety, including in respect of measures such as age verification and a digital age of majority. In the run-up to the Presidency, there is an opportunity for Ireland to demonstrate leadership and build alliances with like-minded EU member states in relation to strengthening online safety for our minors. Coimisiún na Meán has also sought to develop relationships with its EU counterparts, not least as vice-chair of the working group that drew up the guidance for platforms on implementing Article 28 of the DSA on the protection of minors. As I have outlined, significant progress has been made through legislation and regulation and considerations are being given to the next steps but it is also important we educate, and raise awareness among, the general public of Ireland's online safety framework, the obligations of platforms, the rights of users and the role of Coimisiún na Meán.

More generally, in April 2025, the Government approved the publication of a new national counter disinformation strategy. As we all know, disinformation is a serious challenge and one which must be met with a whole-of-society response. The problem is not new. We have seen the corrosive effects of propaganda and false narratives over the centuries. What is new is how easily the mistruths can be produced, how sophisticated and convincing they are and how they can be amplified and circulated at astonishing speed. The problem has, however, been turbocharged by technology. The rate at which technology is evolving means the problem of disinformation is dynamic and we must strive to match this dynamism with steps to counter it. Our efforts to tackle this problem must not and cannot come at the expense of our right to freedom of expression, which is enshrined in Bunreacht na hÉireann. Nevertheless, with rights come responsibilities and it is incumbent on us all to respect the rights of others while exercising our own. The right to freedom of expression must always be balanced with the right to privacy and the right not to be discriminated against. That is why it is important to say the strategy does not set out to decide what is or is not disinformation and is clear it is not the role of the government or regulators to decide on individual instances of disinformation. The strategy sets out to co-ordinate national efforts in the fight against disinformation, with the intention of limiting the creation and spreading of false, misleading and harmful material. One of its fundamental aims is to promote resilience in people to support media literacy and promote high-quality journalism to help people make their own decisions about what is or is not disinformation. To support this, I secured €1.1 million in budget 2026 to fund the implementation. The focus will be on media literacy, fact-checking and research initiatives to support relevant actions in the strategy.

The area of online safety is an ever-changing one. On its establishment in March 2023 Coimisiún na Meán replaced the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland and since then its remit has expanded and continues to grow. In addition to regulating broadcasting and on demand media services and leading on Ireland’s online safety framework, the commission has been designated as a fundamental rights authority and will be a market surveillance authority in respect of certain of the prohibited practices under the EU Artificial Intelligence Act. It has also been designated as a competent authority supervising online platforms under the EU regulation for transparency and targeting of political advertising, TTPA. These additional responsibilities are in policy areas led by Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment for the AI Act and by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage for the TTPA and demonstrate the ever-developing cross-cutting nature of the areas of commitments to be undertaken by the commission that are aimed at ensuring a safe online environment. Finally, it is envisaged the commission will take on the functions under the European Media Freedom Act, EMFA, which is being implemented in Ireland through the media regulation Bill in Ireland.

I will conclude by saying our online safety framework is relatively recent and the focus now is on implementation to ensure platforms meet their obligations. New challenges are being identified and we must continually develop new responses.

The audiovisual media services directive, which underpins the online safety code, is currently being evaluated. Proposals for its revision will be brought forward by the European Commission in quarter 3 of 2026, during our Presidency. This represents a key opportunity to further develop our online safety framework at a European level. This is important, given that Ireland regulates audiovisual media services for the whole of Europe for platforms established here. It is also important because any national measures must be in compliance with existing European law and, therefore, the audiovisual media services directive is an ideal vehicle for introducing new safety measures. In that context, I have no doubt that one of the main issues to be considered will be the minimum age for social media, grounded in European law.

It is important to say that regulation alone will not address all the challenges, nor allow children and young people to derive all the benefits that the online world can bring. We must work to support parents and families to talk about online safety and be aware of the pitfalls. Critically, we must hear the voice of children and young people. Online safety is a whole-of-society issue and a whole-of-government priority, and it will be a focus of mine during our Presidency next year. From a regulatory perspective, we have made good progress but we have a lot more to do.

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