Before I begin, my thoughts are with the seven people impacted by the terrible arson attack off Clanbrassil Street yesterday. I commend the first responders who took brave action and I send my very best wishes to those still recovering in hospital.

Turning to better news, following the recent great election results in Brazil and Serbia, the Democrat surge in the US mid-terms last night has given us all reason to hope again. American voters have pushed back against Trump’s warmongering, his attacks on civil rights and his economic policies that back billionaires over working people. It is now up to the Democrats in congress and the senate to take on the mammoth task of tempering Trump’s worst tantrums before he and his acolytes do any more damage to the world. It is good to see those acolytes damaged by these elections. Indeed, to quote his occasional boss and long-time frenemy, Donald Trump, the perennial “bullshit artist” Elon Musk has wasted half a billion dollars in these elections. Despite this, he was not able to buy the race in Texas or elsewhere.

There is a lesson for the Taoiseach following the US results too. American voters have swung decidedly against tech oligarchs like Musk and against data centres. They are questioning the power of the AI technology furrowing deeper and deeper into everyday life. They are questioning how far from fulfilling its potential for good, AI is threatening democracies, economies and our planet. It is generating mass-scale sexual abuse imagery of the kind my colleague, Deputy Alan Kelly, hopes to tackle with our new Labour Party Bill amending Coco’s Law to be heard here tomorrow. Private sector bosses are citing alleged AI productivity gains in cutting jobs and freezing recruitment of our graduates and young people. Households plagued by the cost of living are watching data centres moving into their communities and further driving up bills. Those factors undoubtedly swung voters against Trump in the US but the same concerns exist here in Ireland.

Our country is home to nearly 150 data centres already although the numbers are difficult to establish due to lack of transparency. We know that nearly a quarter of our electricity goes to data centres, which is the highest per capita rate in the world. Energy costs are soaring. The ESB announced today it will hike the price of EV charging. One in seven households are already in arrears on their electricity bills; a shocking increase of more than 60% in just three years. The Taoiseach cites foreign wars as the reason for this but data centres are directly driving prices up. Friends of the Earth estimates that data centres added more than €715 million to household electricity bills nationally and people are feeling the pinch. On Saturday, we will have the first national protest against data centre expansion. That is one of many taking place across Europe on the same day. However, in June, the Government voted against our Labour Party motion to halt construction of new data centres and levy existing data centre operators. When will the Taoiseach wake up and smell the coffee? When will he act to curb the power of tech oligarchs and end unsustainable data centre growth?

I appreciate the Deputy's observations on the US mid-term elections. Many people will analyse and study the trends and factors underpinning that change. From my initial reading of accounts, I would have thought the war in Iran was a real factor in terms of the consideration of American voters and the high prices and inflation in the US for a number of reasons. Any anecdotal interviews all refer to the high prices. I am not so sure you can neatly characterise the election as just one area around technology and oligarchs.

We are not.

The foreign wars.

I sound a note of caution in terms of how one interprets the outcome of any given election. That is a matter for America and the people of America. The people have given their verdict in these mid-term elections. They have voted for the various candidates in the various races.

From our perspective, the situation between the United States and Europe is much different. We have an AI Act in Europe, for example, which regulates AI. In fact, US authorities and others would criticise Europe for what it terms over-regulation. I do not think we are over-regulated but we are regulated. We should acknowledge that and not give the impression we are not. On the digital side, we also did the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act. Both represent a very substantial edifice of the regulation of the digital world, which the Deputy should acknowledge, that is not present in the US. You cannot compare like with like in respect of European regulatory frameworks vis-à-vis the US, China or other areas of the world. In Ireland, we have established our own structures and powers to support safe, transparent and responsible AI.

The Deputy also referenced data centres. Again, we have a stronger regulatory framework governing the construction of data centres than elsewhere and particularly than the United States. How many data centres were connected to the grid in the last six or seven years?

That is rhetorical.

Yes, it is. I thank the Ceann Comhairle. We need a proper analysis of this with less heat and less emotion. There was literally a de facto moratorium on data centres from 2020 onwards. You have to go to before 2020 and I think there were only one or two connections to the grid. Prior to 2018 or 2017, there was a very substantial increase in data centres in the country. Relative to other countries, we do not have heavy industry or other large energy users. I would be interested to know if the Deputy thinks we should just abandon AI altogether. What is the ultimate objective she is putting forward in terms of how we should approach it?

I absolutely agree with the Taoiseach. There were multiple factors in the US elections and there is no doubt Trump's disastrous war in Iran played a huge part in the Democrat surge and people turning against him. I acknowledged that in my opening remarks. I know the Taoiseach watched these elections closely and that he will be aware the proliferation of data centres played a significant role, particularly in states like Michigan. People really stood out against Trump's policies on AI and against tech oligarchs. Of course, we can harness the power of AI for good. Of course, there is such a thing as ethical tech. It is really important that we speak up for that.

I agree with the Taoiseach about the different context here and strong EU frameworks and regulation. However, that makes it all the more extraordinary that the Government voted against our Labour Party proposals in June to provide better regulation of data centres. Our Deputy, Ciarán Ahern, put forward sensible proposals for regulation to ensure greater transparency. One of the issues the Taoiseach mentioned himself is a simple lack of knowledge about figures and how many data centres are operating. Just one in six are apparently submitting data to the EU energy efficiency directive, according to Friends of the Earth. There is a huge gap here in our knowledge and, therefore, a gap in regulation. Meanwhile, energy costs are soaring and being driven up causing real distress to households across the country.

I question the Friends of the Earth assessments. Some would as well. The organisation itself questions it as well in that the authors acknowledge it has limitations and is "extremely difficult to predict with any certainty". We will park that for a moment. The digital economy is important to Ireland. I presume the Deputy acknowledges that. It is important globally too. In fact, the position in Europe and elsewhere was that this era and the era to come is a digital and green era in terms of going to net zero and so on. The new large energy user action plan, LEAP, which was published only in January of this year, moves us to a more plan-led system in terms of data centres and greater certainty for people all round, reinforced by unprecedented grid investment. The criteria set out by the CRU are strong and stringent in respect of seeking new connections to the electricity system. That is the reality of it.