James Geoghegan (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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446. To ask the Minister for Finance to identify specific examples where artificial intelligence has been adapted for the operation of his Department and each body under the aegis of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12919/25]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I can confirm for the Deputy that my Department follows the Government approved Interim Guidelines for the Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Public Service released in January 2024: www.gov.ie/en/publication/2127d-interim-guidelines-for-use-of-ai/

In doing so, the Government recognised the opportunities AI presents to help improve the delivery of public services to our citizens. These guidelines also established that AI tools used in the civil and public service must comply with seven key requirements for ethical AI. These fall under the headings of: human agency and oversight, technical robustness and safety, privacy and data governance, transparency, diversity, non-discrimination and fairness, societal and environmental well-being, and accountability. My Department recognises the potential of AI and is monitoring developments in this area.

In addition, my Department follows advice from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) released in June 2023. The NCSC guidance inter alia recommended that new technology should only be adopted based on a clearly defined business need following an appropriate risk assessment.

The bodies under the aegis of my Department have advised as follows:

Enterprise Ireland IT provides the Credit Review Office with access to Microsoft’s Co-Pilot AI tool. Credit Review staff utilise this tool for scripting of narratives used in advertising in various publications. It doesn’t use AI in its appeals process, interactions with borrowers, responses to PQs or in responses to any correspondence from outside of its organisation.

The Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO) is currently preparing an organisational AI Policy and continue to follow the guidance of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

The FSPO does not currently use AI for mission critical services, and it is not currently used in relation to consumer data or individual cases. The internal IT team are undertaking training in AI skills in preparation for appropriate application across the business as opportunities emerge.

The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council's Secretariat have undergone internal training on the use of AI. The Fiscal Council pays for use of a specific software suite that includes AI. This software ensures that it does not use data in a way that it can be disclosed or used in training of the AI tool itself.

The National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) has adopted components of AI into its operations in the areas of cyber security monitoring in addition to the use of machine learning by the State Claims Agency for the purposes of supporting some data analytics processes. In respect of generative AI (GenAI), NTMA employees have access to Microsoft Copilot Chat.

Communications have been issued to staff on the use of Gen AI/AI within the NTMA which align to the Interim Guidelines for Use of AI in the Public Service.

The NTMA has incorporated guidance for use of Gen AI into an ICT Security Policy while a Generative AI Governance Framework for the adoption of third-party Gen AI products/services by NTMA has also been implemented.

The NTMA provides certain business and support services and systems to the Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI), the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) and the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI). Information and communications technology (ICT) services are one such service provided to these bodies.

HBFI do not use Artificial Intelligence in their operations. In respect of generative AI (GenAI), as employees of the NTMA, HBFI staff have access to Microsoft Copilot Chat.

NTMA has enabled staff assigned to its affiliate, the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland, to have access to Microsoft Copilot. It is only allowed to be used for lower risk work-related matters strictly in accordance with NTMA Principles of Use guidelines, e.g., employees cannot upload any documents to Copilot other than publicly available documents and information.

I am advised by the Office of the Revenue Commissioners (Revenue) that it has a strong track record in harnessing technology and innovation to deliver on its mission. Revenue has very strong policies and governance in place covering the use of all ICT technology and this includes AI.

Revenue has implemented several initiatives using AI based technology, these include: -

- Using Natural Language Processing (AI/NLP) to classify and route queries from Revenue’s MyEnquiries online channel to the correct back-office location for processing.

- In 2024, Revenue introduced an AI assistant (RevAssist) which is available to all Revenue staff to simplify and expedite access to the information contained in its Tax and Duty Manuals (TDMs) and Taxes Consolidation Act Notes for Guidance.

- In late 2024, in a pilot deployment, RevAssist was expanded to include a service to create initial drafts of TDMs for review and editing by subject matter experts.

- In early 2025, in a pilot deployment, an AI based Optical Character Recognition (OCR) system was deployed to extract key data from documents and image-based material and used by staff to expedite the 1st pass validation of information.

- RevAssist has additionally been trialled to assist access to other internal data sources such as Revenue Technical Service’s opinions, Tax Appeal determinations and HR Policies and Guides.

- Sundry mini–Generative AI services have been deployed to a pilot group to aid administrative processes such as document summarisation, generation of keynote points and analysis of legacy ICT code.

These AI systems were developed in adherence with the EU AI Act and the Government’s Interim Guidelines for the Use of AI in the Public Service, published in January 2024.

Revenue AI training has been prepared and will shortly be introduced for all staff.

The remaining bodies under the aegis of my Department have confirmed that they have not adapted AI for their current operations.