Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Bill 2026: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages
Seanad Éireann — 2026-07-15
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Niamh Smyth (FF), Cavan-Monaghan

I will respond to amendment Nos. 67 and 72. The rights set out in these amendments are already provided for directly by Article 86 of the AI Act. Article 86 is one of the principal individual rights created by the AI Act. It was introduced to address concerns that individuals may be significantly affected by decisions based on high-risk AI systems without understanding how those systems contribute to the outcome.
The provision applies where a decision is taken on the basis of an output of a high-risk AI system listed in Annex III; the decision produces legal effects and similarly significant effects; or the person considers that the decision adversely affects their health, safety or their fundamental rights. The obligation falls on the deployer of the system and it is intended to provide meaningful transparency regarding the role played by AI in the decision-making process. Article 86 grants any affected person the right to obtain from a deployer clear and meaningful explanations on the role of a high-risk AI system in the decision-making process and maintain elements of the decision taken where the decision produces legal effects and similarly significant effects on that person.
As the right arises directly under the AI Act, it is not necessary to recreate or restate that right in national legislation. The Government has generally sought to avoid unnecessary duplication of directly applicable provisions of EU law throughout the Bill. Replicating Article 86 in domestic legislation could create uncertainty if the national texts were interpreted differently from the regulation or if future amendments to the regulation were not reflected in domestic provision.
In addition, the amendment would replace an obligation on the relevant market surveillance authorities to ensure that a person can obtain such explanations. However, Article 86 places the underlying obligation on the deployer, not on the market surveillance authority. The deployer is the entity responsible for providing explanations to affected persons, while market surveillance authorities have a distinct supervisory and enforcement role under the AI Act. The amendment therefore risks blurring the allocation of responsibilities established by the AI Act. It could be interpreted as imposing a new statutory duty on the market surveillance authorities beyond those contemplated by the regulation. I am aware that Article 86 was included in the AI Act specifically to strengthen transparency and accountability in relation to high-risk AI systems. It provides a direct right for affected persons and applies independently of the enforcement arrangements established by member states. The Bill does not remove or limit the right in any way.
Similarly, the objective underlying amendment No. 72 is already substantially addressed by the existing framework of the general data protection regulation, GDPR. The GDPR already contains protections in relation to certain forms of automated decision-making involving personal data, including safeguards related to human involvement and the ability to contest decisions in circumstances falling under Article 22 of the GDPR. These protections continue to apply alongside the AI Act where relevant.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-07-15/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:52:16+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-15