James Geoghegan (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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316. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will outline the steps his Department is taking to improve data collection and database construction in anticipation of the increased data processing capacity that artificial intelligence adoption entails; if he will outline the logic behind their approach; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18364/25]

James Geoghegan (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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319. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will specify the specific policy areas where the Department is examining future use of AI; if he will identify what entities the Department is working with, public or private, in relation to this examination; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18416/25]

James Geoghegan (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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320. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will identify any AI training offered to people working in the Department; the level of take-up; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18433/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 316, 319 and 320 together.

My Department complies with the “Interim Guidelines for Use of AI in the Public Service” issued by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform in February 2024 and also with guidance issued to all Government Departments in June 2023 by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) in relation to the cyber security aspects.

A comprehensive programme of work is underway in my Department to deliver on our strategy to replace legacy and manual processes with new business models underpinned by effective digital solutions. This programme will support my department in achieving the objectives set out in the 2022 National Digital Strategy, Harnessing Digital: The Digital Ireland Framework.

As part of this modernisation programme, my Department has recently deployed a Digital Contact Centre in Immigration Service Delivery, which incorporates an AI assistant and smart chatbot using Microsoft Copilot to provides assistance to applicants and staff. In line with public procurement guidelines, my department procured external services to assist with the delivery of this project, in this instance from EY. The smart assistant is accessed through an authenticated portal on the Immigration Services website. In implementing this solution my department has leveraged Generative AI in a low-risk way to offer enhanced digital services including appointment booking and status inquiries to applicants via the portal and to staff via an internal customer service agent query backend application. Staff training on its use has been provided. Additionally, my Department has approved several training requests for training related to AI, while some officials from my Department have attended seminars and conferences where AI was a key focus.

My Department has also established a data architecture team who are responsible, along with our digital delivery and data analytics teams, for designing how we collect, store, access and process our data ensuring good data governance and alignment with the National Data Infrastructure to facilitate interoperability. In the delivery of this project, and others, the move to new technologies has provided us with an opportunity to move to a more customer centric data model. All data which is collected is in line with GDPR, and the principles underlined by this. We also look to align to the National Data Infrastructure where possible, in line with the Public Sector Data Strategy.

My department plans to continue to assess the opportunities presented by all digital tools, including AI, to improve the delivery, security, efficiency, and accessibility of services to our customers. Approval for adoption of any new tools or solutions is subject to appropriate governance processes, including risk assessment.