Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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259. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the budget allocation for the Data Protection Commission in each of the years of 2017 to 2019, in tabular form; the budget allocation for same in 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46483/19]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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The Government is very conscious of Ireland’s commitment to deliver effective data protection regulation and protection of the data privacy rights of EU citizens. The existence of a professional and competent data protection regulator in Ireland is also a critical enabler to the development and growth of our digital economy. The Government has shown its commitment by providing significant additional resources, in terms of funding and staff resources, to the Data Protection Commission (DPC) in recent years.

In Budget 2020, the DPC was allocated €16.9 million which is an increase of 11% on its allocation in 2019. The increase in budgetary provision demonstrates the Government’s continuing commitment to meeting the funding requirements of the Irish data protection authority and the importance of a strong regulatory data protection framework to underpin the continuing expansion and growth of Ireland’s digital economy.

The Government is committed to keeping the resourcing of the DPC under on-going review. My Department will continue to monitor the impact of implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the impact of any possible future regulatory changes as well as any changes within industry, in conjunction with the DPC, to ensure that the DPC continues to have the resources required to fulfil its important, statutory obligations.