Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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131. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht her views on whether there is a need for adherence to certain standards in social media thereby ensuring customer confidence and reliability; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28047/20]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The General Scheme of the Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill was approved by Government on 9 January 2020 and subsequently published on 10 January 2020. At that time the Government also approved the detailed drafting of the proposed Bill by the Office of the Attorney General and forwarded the General Scheme to the Joint Oireachtas Committee for Communications, Climate Action and Environment for pre-legislative scrutiny. Due to the dissolution of the Dáil and Committees in January, pre-legislative scrutiny has not yet commenced. Engagement with the AGO is continuing on the detailed drafting of the Bill.

The enactment of the proposed Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill is a commitment in the Programme for Government. As per Government decision of 22 September 2020, responsibility for the proposed Bill has now been transferred to the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

Government approval will be sought shortly for the finalisation of General Scheme of the proposed Bill through the addition to the provisions relating to the funding of the Media Commission, the regulation of audiovisual media services, the maximum amount for financial sanctions for non-compliance and other matters. These additional provisions will then be forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General for addition as a basis for detailed drafting and to the relevant Joint Oireachtas Committee for pre-legislative scrutiny. It is for the relevant newly formed Committee to determine whether and when to commence such scrutiny.

At this time, the finalised General Scheme will also be notified to the European Commission for a technical conformity assessment with relevant EU law regarding regulations on online services.

The proposed Bill will establish a multi-person Media Commission, including an Online Safety Commissioner, dissolve the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, establish regulatory frameworks for online safety and the regulation of audiovisual media services, and transpose the revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive. The regulatory framework for online safety will be overseen by the Online Safety Commissioner. The Commissioner will have the power to designate online services for regulation and to create and enforce binding online safety codes, which will set standards that online services will be required to follow. These will seek to minimise the availability of harmful online content through oversight of the systems that online services used to deliver and moderate content. The regulator will have the power to sanction non-compliant online services, including financial sanctions.

Regarding consumer protection more broadly, the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, the Data Protection Commission and An Garda Síochána have general roles, including in relation to activity on or by social media, in advertising and consumer protection standards, data protection and privacy law and fraud and other offences respectively.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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132. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the degree to which an examination has been carried out as to whether the established media, print, electronic and broadcasting, are being disadvantaged by social media; if steps will be taken to address these issues without interfering with the freedom of the press; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28048/20]

Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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On 10 December 2019 the former Government agreed the terms of reference for the Commission on the Future of Irish Public Service Broadcasting to be established by the Department of the Taoiseach. The former  President of Dublin City University, Professor Brian Mac Craith was appointed as Chair of the Commission.

The Programme for Government has expanded the remit of the Public Service Broadcasting Commission to become a Future of Media Commission  to consider the future of print, broadcast, and online media in a platform  agnostic fashion and details of the Commission were announcer earlier this week.  It is expected that the Commission will complete its deliberations within nine months on the necessary measures that need to be taken to ensure that there is a vibrant, independent public service media for the next generation.