Online Safety: Motion
Seanad Éireann — 2026-02-26
============================================================

Fiona O'Loughlin (FF), Administrative Panel

I move:
“That Seanad Éireann:
recognises that:
- we are at a pivotal moment in our digital transformation;
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping how we live, how we work, and how we interact as a society;
- Ireland has strong digital foundations with our well-established reputation as a digital hub, our exceptional talent base and our vibrant innovation ecosystem;
- Digital Ireland – Connecting our People, Securing our Future sets out the Government’s ambition to 2030 to strengthen our position as a digital leader and a global hub for applied AI innovation;
agrees that:
- Ireland has a robust online safety framework;
- the EU’s Digital Services Act and the creation of Coimisiún na Meán has brought to an end the era of self-regulation of big tech platforms;
- online safety, particularly for children and young people, is a priority for us all;
- new challenges will inevitably arise as technologies continue to evolve;
- we must maintain a modern, cohesive and well-resourced regulatory framework that is responsive to the evolving digital age;
notes that:
- Ireland will soon assume the Presidency of the Council of the European Union;
- online safety will be a priority during the Presidency;
- as part of the Presidency, we will host an International AI and Digital Summit to showcase Ireland as a digital and regulatory hub;
calls for:
- Ireland to be a strong voice in Europe for a digital economy which supports competitiveness and innovation, while protecting data privacy and fundamental rights;
- the Government to ensure we reap the benefits of digital technologies and AI for growth and competitiveness and to enhance our public services;
- the Government to ensure that everyone in our society is empowered to succeed in a digital era, by fostering the skills, literacy and the societal trust necessary for a confident digital future;
- the Government to strengthen Ireland’s position as an EU centre of excellence and digital regulatory hub;
- Ireland’s Council Presidency to reflect our ambition to be at the forefront of digital innovation; and to advocate for a digital age of majority but will take action at domestic level, if necessary;
- our Presidency to prioritise the protection of women and children, in particular, from the misuse of digital tools;
- Ireland to advance the EU’s AI Act during our Presidency;
- Ireland to advocate for adding the AI generation of intimate abuse images to the list of prohibited practices in Article 5 of the AI Act;
- the Government to advocate for a decision on the ‘digital age of majority’ to be taken at EU level; and to work with like-minded countries to introduce age restrictions on the use of social media, concentrating on those under 16;
- the full implementation of Digital Ireland’s 20 high-level objectives and 90 specific deliverables;
- the prioritisation of deliverables for children and young people, including:
- supporting Coimisiún na Meán to improve awareness and reporting of AI-generated non-consensual intimate images;
- supporting robust age verification across the EU;
- implementing, with the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, a wide scale pilot on age verification in conjunction with one or more of the major platforms, to run for several months to test technology and to ensure public buy in; and
- the support of schools and teachers through updated resources on online safety.”

---

Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-02-26/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:42+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-26