Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 June 2026
320. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the reason he repealed the requirement that election material display the name of the printer and the publisher of the material; the consultation he took in advance of this decision; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46434/26]
View answerRegulation (EU) 2024/900 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the transparency and targeting of political advertising was adopted by the European institutions on 13 March 2024. The principal objective of the Regulation is to make it easier for voters to recognise political advertisements, understand who is behind them and know whether they have received a targeted advertisement, so that they are better placed to make informed choices during elections and referendums.
An overarching objective of Regulation (EU) 2024/900 is to provide for a harmonised approach throughout all 27 Member States of the European Union in relation to the transparency and targeting of political advertising, thereby removing the fragmented rules, definitions and regulatory approaches that had applied in many Members States prior to the Regulation's adoption.
The European Union (Political Advertising) Regulations 2025 (S.I. No. 474 of 2025), which were made under section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972, facilitate the implementation in Ireland of Regulation (EU) 2024/900. In light of the new labelling and transparency requirements for political advertising set out in the EU Regulation, the requirement in the Electoral Act 1992 that election material display the name and address of the printer and of the publisher of the material was repealed by S.I. 474 of 2025. S.I. 474 of 2025 commenced to have effect directly in the State on 10 October 2025 in accordance with the requirements of Regulation (EU) 2024/900.
