James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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105. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will report on the major gathering of EU Digital Ministers hosted in Dublin recently; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23055/24]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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On 19th of April I was proud to host Digital Ministers from the D9+ group of advanced digital member States, together with my colleague Minister Ossian Smyth, at a plenary meeting in Dublin Castle where we shared experiences in implementing the suite of groundbreaking EU digital rules which will set the guardrails for the digital economy in Europe. The meeting was the central event of Ireland’s six-month chairmanship of the D9+ group.

At the meeting, we shared our experiences and learnings from implementing the suite of landmark EU digital regulation that has been enacted in recent years, including the Digital Services Act, the Digital Markets Act and the Artificial Intelligence Act, we discussed our approaches to the establishment of AI regulatory sandboxes, and we talked about learnings that can be built into the development of future EU digital regulation.

At the conclusion of the meeting the D9+ members agreed a ministerial declaration covering 5 themes, including the importance of effective and coherent digital regulation as a foundation for innovation and growth in the EU, and the importance of predictability in fostering investment and growth.

This declaration will be discussed at the EU Competitiveness Council this week.

Ireland’s 6 month chairmanship of the D9+ has been an important opportunity to work with like minded member States to act as a strong voice in Europe for a balanced approach to digital regulation in areas such as data, digital markets, digital services, cyber security and AI, bringing Ireland’s expertise and experience to the table.