Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Government launched the National Digital Strategy, Harnessing Digital – The Digital Ireland Framework, in February 2022. Much progress has been made on implementation, and a full progress report, covering achievements across all four dimensions of the strategy, was published in December 2022.

My Department is responsible for the Enterprise pillar of the Strategy, which deals specifically with the digitalisation of business in Ireland and I am pleased to acknowledge the significant achievements made to date in the implementation of this dimension of the Strategy.

The Enterprise Digital Advisory Forum continues to provide expert support and advise Government in driving the uptake of digital technologies by businesses across Ireland. The Forum, which met most recently on 13th June, brings together representatives of indigenous enterprises, multi-national companies, and experts in digital technologies and their adoption by business. The Forum has agreed a new Work Programme for 2023 and a new call for expressions of interest to join the Forum has been published.

Dr Patricia Scanlon continues to serve in the voluntary role as AI Ambassador which involves promoting awareness among the public and businesses of the potential offered by AI, serving as a champion of AI as a positive force for the economy and society, and emphasising an ethical approach. A

The €85m Digital Transition Fund (DTF) continues to be a key tool in driving the digitalisation of enterprise in line with the targets under the National Digital Strategy. The fund is in place to help businesses at all stages of their digital journey, from going online to facilitating exporting and using digital technologies to reach new markets and to improve their productivity and competitiveness. Under Budget 2023, €16m will be made available under the DTF.

We are also making good progress in the development of the new "Grow Digital" Portal that will help businesses to digitalise by diagnosing how digital tools can best help their business and outlining practical steps they can take. In addition, my officials and Enterprise Ireland are working on a new universal digital voucher scheme to bridge the gap between the levels of digitalisation in the indigenous, locally traded sector and larger businesses.

Looking ahead, Ireland will chair the Digital 9+ (D9+) grouping of digital frontrunner countries in Europe in the first half of 2024. This will be an important opportunity to demonstrate our ambition, as articulated in the National Digital Strategy, to be a digital leader at the heart of European and global digital developments. To coincide with this tenure as chair, we will organise the next Digital Ireland Conference.

There has been strong progress across our digital regulatory workstream including the Government’s decision to designate our new Media Commission, Coimisiún na Meán, as Ireland’s Digital Services Coordinator, under the Digital Services Act, and work is ongoing to give operational and legislative effect to that decision.