Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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449. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he can guarantee that An Garda Síochána has never intercepted communications involving journalists given the declaration by the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, that it intercepted the phones of journalists in Northern Ireland. [49738/25]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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450. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he can guarantee that An Garda Síochána has never intercepted communications involving public officials given the declaration by the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, that it intercepted the phones of journalists in Northern Ireland. [49739/25]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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451. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he can guarantee that An Garda Síochána has never intercepted communications involving members of the Houses of the Oireachtas given the declaration by the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, that it intercepted the phones of journalists in Northern Ireland. [49740/25]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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452. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if his Department has ever been made aware of or if any officials have any knowledge regarding the interception of communications involving members of the Houses of the Oireachtas given the declaration by the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, that it intercepted the phones of journalists in Northern Ireland. [49741/25]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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453. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if his Department has ever been made aware of or if any officials have any knowledge regarding the interception of communications involving journalists given the declaration by the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, that it intercepted the phones of journalists in Northern Ireland. [49742/25]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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454. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if his Department has ever been made aware of or if any officials have any knowledge regarding the interception of communications involving public officials given the declaration by the British Intelligence Agency, MI5, that it intercepted the phones of journalists in Northern Ireland. [49743/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 449, 450, 451, 452, 453 and 454 together.

In Ireland, lawful interception is governed by the Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunications Messages (Regulation) 1993. The Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration may authorise bodies designated under the Act to lawfully intercept communications for the purposes of investigating serious crime or safeguarding the security of the State. Under section 6 of the Act, an application for authorisation of interception may be made by the Garda Commissioner, the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, or the Police Ombudsman.

The Deputy will be aware that section 12 of the 1993 Act restricts disclosure in respect of lawful interception authorisations and it places a requirement on the Minister to ensure that such arrangements are in place to limit to the minimum necessary for the purpose of the prevention or detection of serious offences or in the interests of the security of the State, the disclosure of the fact that an authorisation has been given, and the contents of any communication which has been intercepted pursuant to an authorisation. Therefore it is not the practice, and it would be contrary to the public interest, to disclose detail of any authorisations to intercept or indeed to comment on the specific details of any means that may be used by State agencies in exercising statutory lawful interception powers.

Use of lawful interception powers in the State is subject to a number of strict conditions. The operation of the Act is overseen independently by the Independent Examiner of Security Legislation, the office for which was established by the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024.

There is also a Complaints Referee who can receive and investigate any complaints made relating to lawful interception. In carrying out his functions, the Complaints Referee has, by law, full access to people and records he considers relevant to his investigations and my officials have a duty to cooperate with him.