52. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the reason reported warnings from officials (details supplied) about the potential end use of weapons were overlooked in the approval of dual-use exports to armaments companies with links to the Israeli military. [67631/26]

Controls on the export of dual-use items are administered by my Department, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2021/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council setting up a Union regime for the control of exports, brokering, technical assistance, transit and transfer of dual-use items.

The bulk of dual-use exports from Ireland, including those to end users in Israel, are mainstream business ICT products, both hardware and software. They are categorised as dual-use items as a consequence of the fact that they incorporate strong encryption for ICT security purposes.

All export licence applications are considered by my officials in accordance with criteria set out within the relevant dual-use and military EU and National Regulations and with Ireland’s international obligations and responsibilities as members of non-proliferation regimes and export control arrangements. Each application is assessed individually, considering the nature of the items, the destination country, the identity of the end-user, and the intended end-use. Ireland’s decisions are guided by the EU Common Position and its eight criteria, which include respect for human rights, international obligations, regional stability and risk of diversion to another end use or end user.

It is the responsibility of officials to raise any concerns that arise during the assessment of an application. Those concerns are then subject to detailed examination. In some cases, the concerns are upheld and, where the associated risks cannot be satisfactorily mitigated, the application is refused. In other cases, further investigation, additional information and appropriate mitigation measures demonstrate that the proposed export presents a low level of risk, allowing the application to be approved.

The risk profile of an application is impacted by current geopolitical factors, the end user, the items in question and their ability to be mis-used. Each application is treated on a case-by case basis. Reliable and verifiable information available at the time and the associated risk assessments can therefore change from application to application. A licence that may have been granted in one instance could be refused in a later, similar case where the relevant circumstances or risk assessment differ.