Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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23. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he has met with the special rapporteur for the Action Plan Against Racism; if he can provide an update on the implementation of the Action Plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54191/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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The Government recognises the importance of meaningful action to address racism and its impacts in Ireland. The 5-year National Action Plan Against Racism, or NAPAR, represents a whole-of-Government approach to achieving this, as racism is a cross-cutting issue that necessitates action by Government, public bodies, private bodies, communities and individuals.

I had a constructive meeting with the Special Rapporteur for Racism and Racial Equality, Dr Ebun Joseph, along with the European Commission’s Anti-Racism Coordinator, Michaela Moua, during June 2025.

In that meeting I reaffirmed my Department’s commitment to monitoring and supporting the implementation of the National Action Plan Against Racism 2023-2027 and Ireland’s commitment to combatting racism.

The National Action Plan Against Racism: Second Implementation Report 2024 was recently published and is available on gov.ie. This is the second iteration of the Implementation Report for the 2024 period and was published alongside a data report on the impact of the NAPAR.

The Special Rapporteur’s first annual report on the National Action Plan Against Racism (NAPAR) is expected in the coming weeks.

Department officials continue to meet and work with a wide range of other Government departments and public sector bodies to progress the implementation of relevant actions under NAPAR for 2025.

The Ireland Against Racism Fund (IARF), has been an important element in supporting the implementation of the NAPAR since its launch in 2023. It arose in response to Action 2.14 of the NAPAR, which states: ‘‘Provide funding for national and local initiatives that aim to combat racism and foster racial equality and community cohesion, in order to support the implementation of this plan and the achievement of its objectives’’.

The overall objective of this fund is to provide funding for national and regional projects, as well as local initiatives, that aim to combat racism and foster racial equality and community cohesion. 57 projects amounting to €2.4 million have been funded under the scheme to date.

A funding call for the 2025 IARF recently closed, and successful candidates will receive funding grants in the coming months.