Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 May 2026
177. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance the action he plans to take in response to research published by his Department finding that employment among 15-29 year-olds in ICT fell by over 20% between 2023 and 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39410/26]
View answerArtificial Intelligence is rapidly moving from development into real-world deployment, and as one of Europe’s most digitally advanced economies, Ireland is likely to be at the forefront of these changes.
We are seeing this reflected in skills demand. Job postings data highlights that our labour market is currently undergoing rapid change, with 13 per cent of all job postings mentioning AI-related terms as of April 2026, up from 3 per cent just two years earlier.
My Department has been active in assessing the emerging impact of Artificial Intelligence on our labour market. My Department’s latest Economic Insight publication, published in February, suggests that AI is already influencing employment patterns in Ireland. Since 2023, sectors that are relatively exposed to AI have experienced weaker employment growth relative to less-exposed sectors, with these effects strongest among younger workers in highly digitised sectors.
At the same time, we know that AI presents significant opportunities to enhance productivity and strengthen our competitiveness. Indeed, my Department’s Future Forty publication emphasised the importance of delivering improvements in our productivity through the application and development of digital technologies, including AI.
This Government is committed to ensuring that Ireland will continue to be a global leader in the development and adoption of new digital technologies. Our new National Digital and AI Strategy, published in February of this year, sets out a whole-of-Government approach to drive the adoption of trustworthy, person-centred AI for our collective good. That means equipping our workforce with cutting edge skills, strengthening digital literacy and public trust, and helping workers navigate potential job displacement through agile, and accessible upskilling and reskilling opportunities.
