Post European Council Meeting: Statements
Dail Éireann — 2026-04-22
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Sinéad Gibney (SD), Dublin Rathdown

Earlier, I referenced three topics: the digital omnibus, the EU-Israel Association Agreement and the ECHR. I welcome Ireland’s moves on the EU-Israel Association Agreement but I want to know what more is going to be done. How are we going to keep the pressure on to suspend the agreement and bring Europe's response to the Israeli genocide into line with our actions against Russia?
Second, I wish to ask about the digital omnibus. Last week, in error, I referenced the Fianna Fáil grouping as the EPP. I apologise for that. I sometimes get mixed up between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael; who would have thought it? I would be curious to know about the Renew Europe grouping. When I first spoke to the Minister of State’s Renew grouping colleague, Michael McNamara MEP in Brussels about this, he said there was more of a split in the Renew grouping. I want to know what Fianna Fáil's position is on the digital omnibus specifically and whether it is supporting the digital omnibus. Within that, there is a move back towards self-regulation by the tech sector, and the removal of the high-risk systems we are all seeking in relation to tech regulation, particularly in light of the European digital identity wallet.
Finally, and crucially, I want to understand Ireland’s position on the ECHR and why, after criticising the UK for attacking the ECHR, we have followed in its footsteps and chosen to commit to the Chisinau process. Why and for what reason? How can we square that with our own human rights record and our ambition to be on the UN Human Rights Council?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-22/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:51+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-22