Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday, I had the honour of addressing the space industry in Ireland. I was shocked to learn there are 109 companies operating in that industry, some of which have products in space as part of various scientific projects. That is wonderful. Every now and then, I get an opportunity to congratulate the Government on something. It is great that we have Skillnet, which provides training in respect of future technology in space. There is a whole programme of events and courses in this regard that people can undertake through Skillnet.

I must also congratulate the Government on cybersecurity. This is an interest of mine and has been for some time. The Government, through Enterprise Ireland, has made available grants of up to €63,000 for SMEs to improve their cybersecurity. In that context, in the dying days of this Government we should acknowledge some good things have happened over the past four years. It is extremely important that companies that qualify for the Enterprise Ireland grant scheme start to prepare for network and information systems 2, NIS2, directive which is coming down the road. There is a bad side to this in that we have missed the date for NIS2. It will probably take a year before we catch up, but NIS2 is going to place responsibility for cyber directly in the boardroom. People will no longer be in a position to say that the IT department is looking after something. Boards of directors and senior management within companies could be struck off if they fail to implement the cybersecurity rules coming from Europe. I urge people to make use of the grants that are available through Enterprise Ireland and get themselves up and running.

We are living in dangerous times. People like to think cyberattacks come from Russia, Iran and China. Cyberattacks come from Waterford, Cork, Galway and anywhere else people care to think of. It is not always bad actor countries that are involved, although they are the main antagonists. Every now and then it is individuals who are responsible. It is vitally important that companies get up to speed on cybersecurity.

I spoke to some people in the Defence Forces earlier who are serving in Lebanon. I congratulated them on their overall level of morale. It was fantastic to see people who are still on top of their game and doing the job they were sent out to do. We must be proud of them.