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Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- Irish Examiner
The racist attack on an Indian man in Tallaght recently was not a once-off. Ireland must act
When I first watched the now-removed social media video of a man bloodied and stripped in a Dublin street, I felt my stomach turn. The images were violent, yes, but the silence of the onlookers hit harder. Helpless and humiliated, the victim of the ruthless actions of a few anti-social elements stood surrounded, not by support, but by scrutiny. No one intervened until much later. And somehow, in the noise that followed, the narrative became not about the victim, but about invented claims against him. What happened in Tallaght on the evening of July 19 wasn't just a senseless brutality. It was the culmination of misinformation, racial profiling and a deeper discomfort with confronting racism when it shows up at our doorsteps. As someone from India now living in Dublin, I find this incident both frightening and painfully familiar. Within hours of the man's video going viral, false rumours about him had spread like wildfire on social media. The original lie that he had exposed himself to children was debunked by the Gardaí. Yet, the damage was done. People believed the falsehood because it was easy to do so. In our digitally connected world, fabricated information often travels faster and farther than facts. This is what happens when misinformation and disinformation are taken at face value. It is deeply unfortunate that something like this even happened in the first place. However, this one incident has triggered broader debates and much-needed conversations. It has nudged people to think more actively about racial violence and false narratives that perpetuate such violence. Protesters marching to the Dáil to protest against the Indian man's brutal assault in Tallaght. Photo: Leah Farrell/© In the days since, I've heard countless stories from others in the Indian and wider migrant community. Many recounted experiences of racial slurs, glares, harassment and in some cases, assault, which go unreported or are not investigated swiftly. The common thread in most of these stories? The perpetrators were often teenagers. This incident has heightened my safety concerns. I still believe in Ireland's potential as a welcoming place. I've been embraced by Irish friends, neighbours and colleagues who have shown immense warmth. But I now walk a little faster past certain groups. I look over my shoulder more than I used to. And I find myself worrying more for my friends and for those who are yet to arrive here. What has brought some solace during this painful time is the powerful mobilisation of the Indian community and the support from other migrant groups as well. Last week, a delegation of the Indian community met with Ambassador Akhilesh Mishra at the Embassy of India in Ireland to present their concerns. They were answered with compassion and clarity which is the need of the hour. It was confirmed that the matter has been reported to higher authorities in India and Ireland. Margaret Byrne from Tallaght with her dog Pablo at an anti-racism protest organised by the Community group Dublin South-West Together (DSWT) in Tallaght at the weekend. Photo: Leah Farrell/© Taking into account the fact that many Indian students come to Ireland every year, a safety advisory for such incoming students will soon be issued. These initial steps are welcome, but what is needed is strong safeguards and speedy investigations. Community leader Raghav Dixit, who helped convene the delegation, echoed what many of us have been feeling. 'The first and foremost thing about the speedy investigation. Usually in such sensitive cases, the Garda Commissioner or Superintendent makes a public statement. Nobody has made that statement so far.' All of us appreciate the Gardaí's formal acknowledgement of the incident as racially motivated but it has come far too late. There are also concerns about Ireland's juvenile justice system, where there is a need to reform how serious offences committed by minors are handled. Let me be clear, this is not an Indian versus Irish issue. This is something that concerns all of us. This is about accountability, safety and human dignity. Members of the migrant community in Ireland marching to the Dáil to protest against the Indian man's brutal assault in Tallaght. In the days since, I've heard countless stories from others in the Indian and wider migrant community of racial slurs, glares, harassment and in some cases, assault, which go unreported or are not investigated swiftly. Photo: Leah Farrell/© Migrants don't just come to Ireland seeking jobs or education; they come here to build lives. Many South Asians arrive on critical skills visas, filling essential roles in healthcare, IT and education. We contribute, we belong, and we deserve protection. What we do not deserve is for our pain to be politicised or dismissed. The rise in anti-immigrant rhetoric online only fuels division and endangers real people. Thankfully, we have also seen compassion. From people like Jennifer Murray who stepped up to help the victim and gave out a clear message on what humanity truly means and from everybody who has come out in our support. Now we must look further and beyond. The Gardaí must be resourced adequately. Investigations must be swift and transparent. Hate crime laws must be enforced decisively, not after weeks of public pressure. And we must build solidarity, not walls, between communities. I still want to live here. I still feel at home, like many from India who have become naturalised citizens of Ireland and also represent us in the government. But silence is not an option anymore. Hate needs to be called out. If Ireland is to truly be the country it strives to be, diverse, kind, just, then what happened in Tallaght must be the beginning of a reckoning, not just another news cycle. I remember what several migrant communities shouted at a recent march in Dublin in condemnation of this incident: 'This is not the Ireland we came to, this is not what Ireland represents.' Let's make sure that remains true. Read More Colin Sheridan: Institutional racism wears a necktie
Extra.ie
3 days ago
- Extra.ie
Tallaght teen shouted ‘we're off to get a foreigner' before vicious attack on Indian man
'We're off to get a foreigner,' one teenager was heard shouting to another after an unaware Indian man walked past a playground in a Dublin suburb last Saturday evening. The man, who had only arrived in Ireland a week previously after being brought over by Amazon because he is a specialist in his field, was on his way to a nearby temple to pray. He didn't pay much attention to the teenagers continued down the road almost 500 metres before he was suddenly and savagely set upon. The brutal attack is now being investigated as a possible hate crime by gardaí. Pic: KarlM Photography/Shutterstock The young father of an 11-month-old child was beaten, had his face slashed, was stripped naked from the waist down and had his phone and money taken. The teenagers made off with his clothes leaving him crawling half naked on the ground. Speaking to local mother Jennifer Murray spoke of how she came to the man's aid, put him in the recovery position, as it looked as if he was about to pass out, and reassured him he was not going to die. Jennifer Murray. Pic: Seán Dwyer Footage was taken of the attack by the teenagers involved and within seconds was shared on Snapchat to other teens in the area. The man was accused without any evidence of being a 'paedophile'. Jennifer Murray. Pic: Seán Dwyer The brutal attack, which happened along Parkhill Road, in Kilnamanagh, Tallaght, Dublin on Saturday at 6pm, is now being investigated as a possible hate crime by gardaí. Ms Murray told how the lie spread instantly around social media and how the victim was assaulted for a second time by another gang of teenagers and, also, grown men. One man got out of his car, walked over and punched him as Ms Murray tried to help the man. He also roared at the brave mother not to help him. The incident happened along Parkhill Road, in Kilnamanagh, Tallaght, Dublin on Saturday at 6pm. Pic: Seán Dwyer 'For that man to get up and come out on to a road looking for help to be further attacked is beyond the realms of understanding,' Ms Murray told 'Teenagers are stupid, their frontal lobes haven't developed, but the adults, grown men pulling over cars to go over and punch him is beyond comprehension.' She said the victim was 'in a terrible state'. Blood was dripping from his head and out of his nose as she tried desperately to help him. 'Then I realised they had stripped him. He was highly embarrassed. He had no clothes on and was giving me his name, address and company he worked for. I told him this never should have happened to you, you are important, your life is important.' Jennifer Murray. Pic: Leah Farrell/ Ms Murray said if she and another woman hadn't intervened she fears the man would have died. 'They did the initial damage of stabbing him, beating him, forcing his clothes off and robbing his phone. Then they robbed him of his dignity. They took his clothes, there were no clothes around where it happened. They didn't even leave his clothes so he could crawl and put them back on. They took his clothing with his phone and his money during the attack. 'Another woman was telling them to stop then I intervened. I think he was lucky we were there because, given the extent of his injuries, he easily could have been killed.' Ms Murray said she sat and reassured the man as they waited for gardaí and an ambulance. 'He was incredibly polite and incredibly brave. He trusted me which must have been so hard, after he was met with so much aggression. 'I didn't want him to think he was going to die. I was trying to reassure him he will be OK, even though he will probably never be OK again.' The man told gardaí he had been punched in the head, but injuries he sustained showed a blade was used on his face. One deep cut to his forehead was almost two inches long. The victim has been deeply traumatised and is experiencing problems with his vision. 'I am in touch with him every day since,' Ms Murray said this weekend. 'He is extremely traumatised. 'He is out of hospital, but back in most days because he is having trouble with his eyesight and for wound dressing. He will forever be physically scarred, but I think the mental scars will be more detrimental to him,' she said. Since the brutal attack, the man has stayed mostly in his bedroom. He doesn't feel comfortable around more than two people at any one time. 'That's his limit and the whole PTSD crowd thing kicks in and he has to go back into his room. 'I have found an Indian psychotherapist to work with him when he is ready. He needs this as much as he needs medical treatment. 'At the moment he genuinely needs to be on his own, he is completely traumatised,' she said. Ms Murray told how the man has been shielded from the lies spread about him. She doesn't want to tell him he was attacked is because of the colour of his skin. 'How do you tell someone who is completely innocent that this is why that happened to him?' she asked. 'He won't understand why this is being said about him and then you have to explain it's because of the colour of your skin. And that's the real truth. He was first attacked because he was Indian and then further attacked because of the lies that were spread about him.' A woman who saw and heard the teenage gang target the victim has come forward to gardaí, but she doesn't want to be identified out of fear for her own safety. Ms Murray told this woman was in the playground with her child when she saw the gang nearby. They weren't causing trouble and she didn't feel overly intimidated by them. She noticed the Indian man walk past. Nothing was said to the man at the time, but as he walked away the gang split. 'Where are you going?' asked one of the teenage gang. Another said: 'We're off to get a foreigner.' The woman is 'riddled with guilt' because she didn't intervene before it was too late. 'She didn't expect a group of teenagers to go from a group of messers to a group of potential murderers in minutes,' said Ms Murray. 'The guards were here with me on Tuesday for three or four hours and they said: 'This is not normal'. 'Aside from the attack, the verbal abuse and the hatred surrounding him as he lay bleeding on the ground is simply a product of an untruth. 'This man was just out for a walk.'
Irish Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Post
Protest in Dublin following racially-motivated attack on Indian national in Tallaght
HUNDREDS of people took to the streets of Dublin on Saturday to protest against a racially-motivated attack on an Indian national in Tallaght last Saturday. The protestors gathered at City Hall before marching to the Dáil to highlight such attacks, which they say are growing in frequency but are under-reported. The event, organised by members of the migrant community in Ireland, saw demonstrators carrying placards reading 'Stop racist attacks' and 'Don't blame migrants, blame the system'. In a statement this week, gardaí said they were treating the incident, which occurred in Kilnamanagh, as racially-motivated. (Image: Leah Farrell / Footage of the bloodied victim has appeared online, alongside false claims that he had been acting inappropriately with children prior to the attack. "We are aware of misinformation and disinformation in circulation regarding the circumstances prior to this assault — this baseless speculation is completely false," added gardaí. The victim, who had only been in Ireland for a week, had reportedly been beaten and striped from the waist down after being set upon by a gang of teenagers. (Image: Leah Farrell / Saturday's protest was supported by numerous organisations including United Against Racism, Migrant Rights Centre Ireland, Migrant Nurses Ireland and Unite the Union. Ahead of the march, organisers attributed such attacks in Ireland to the rise of the far-right. "This Indian man came here to work in a multinational company," read a statement. "A huge contribution is made by migrant workers to Ireland's economy and society. (Image: Leah Farrell / "But the growth of racism and the far-right internationally is allowing hate, lies and division to spread and making these type of assaults more common. "This protest is about the entire migrant community in Ireland coming together — and of course we also appeal to Irish people, trade unions and community groups to come out in support so that we can send a powerful message to racists and build a strong united front against racism." On Friday, a silent protest was held at the Department of members of the Indian community in Ireland, while an anti-racism vigil was held later that evening in Tallaght. See More: Dublin, Kilnamanagh, Tallaght
Irish Post
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Post
Another chapter in the De Dannan story
Stage three cancer, lost friends, legal rows, but Frankie Gavin is still standing, still fiddling, still Frankie Mary Black, Frankie Gavin, Michelle Lally and Eric Cunningham (picture Sasko Lazarov: HAVING played for four American Presidents, somehow it seemed appropriate and amusing to be meeting up with my old friend, the virtuoso fiddler Frankie Gavin, at The President Hotel in Bloomsbury. When he was just six years old, Frankie had played for President John F. Kennedy, but was later invited by George W. Bush, followed by Bill Clinton and Obama. Frankie was in London with the latest iteration of his group De Dannan to headline one of the 'Return to London' concerts promoted by Irish Music and Dance London at the Bloomsbury Theatre. In recent years I have had a cardinal rule that, when meeting people of my own generation, I never, under any circumstances, risk asking them how they are — as inevitably they will answer with lurid descriptions of recent medical procedures. However, here, before talking about music, I broke the rule immediately, as I was most concerned to find out if Frankie had recovered from his recent cancer scare. Mercifully, he told me he was fine — but had been very lucky. 'I had stage three oesophageal cancer,' Frankie said. 'And a friend of mine who's a doctor — he's actually a gastroenterologist in Dublin — he got me checked out, basically because it was just after Covid and it was impossible to get appointments. It was very difficult. But he got me an appointment in Dublin, as I was burping and then not being able to swallow food — it would just get stuck there and I couldn't swallow. So I was fading away with hunger and it was just awfully upsetting. 'It so happened that my daughter Ruby saw an article in The New York Times . She was in New York at the time and she saw this article about a game-changer in oesophageal cancer by two Irish doctors — Dr Greg Leonard, and another doctor who lives in America. 'Where does he live, this Greg Leonard? Only Galway! Praise be to God. So I was on to him and he took on my case. When I met him, he looked, like, very serious. 'I mean, it was stage three. You know what I mean? I mean stage anything is bad — but stage three? You're a goner anyway. So it was just got in time. But anyway, he said, this is what we're gonna do: we're gonna have this, we're gonna do that, we're gonna have radiotherapy. We're gonna have to get all the chemo and all this kind of stuff that nearly killed me anyway, you know. 'And I mean, they eventually had the tubes into me just to feed me, like. You know, he got me through all that, and I had an absolute resurgence of health — and hair growth. 'The next thing was he contacted me and said, 'I'd like to see you in the office.' I thought: this is serious. This means really bad news. 'He said, 'Have a look there.' 'I said, 'I can't see anything.' 'He said, 'That's the point. There's nothing. It's completely clear.' It was like an absolute miracle. The powers of modern science and all the rest of it — also known as the grace of God.' I was obviously delighted to hear this news, and certainly Frankie did seem to have his old mischievous sparkle back. I noted that (characteristically for Frankie) he complained on the way to the venue that he had paid for dinner — because, as we ate at his hotel, it just went on to his room bill. Our friendship/business relationship all started such a long time ago — back in about 1976. The original De Dannan, formed in Spiddal near Galway after enjoying sessions in Hughes's pub, consisted of Frankie, Alec Finn, Ringo McDonagh and Charlie Piggot. Dolores Keane joined them on their first album — which was produced by Dónal Lunny for Polydor. This was released in early 1976 but unfortunately, soon after the release, Dolores left the band. Frankie took up the story: 'John Faulkner came to Ireland with the BBC crew to make a documentary about Irish music and the next thing was, John and Dolores teamed up. 'Dolores announced: 'I'm leaving the band. I'm going to live with John in Palmers Green in London.' 'The news — ah, it was a terrible moment. My heart sank when she left. It was sad, a really sad day, but we had to carry on. So after Dolores, we had Andy Irvine briefly, and we did the tour of Germany with Andy. There was a conflict with Andy's own dates so he left and Johnny Moynihan came in — and perhaps that was when we asked you to come in and help with management and to organise a UK tour and get us a new record deal.' I THINK Andy or Johnny had mentioned my name to Alec, as a year before, in 1975, I had organised the Planxty UK tour, which they were on. So Alec called me, and I remember the first time I saw the band was at the Project Arts Theatre in Dublin, at the back of the Clarence Hotel. I recalled to Frankie: 'From then I spent loads of time with you in Galway. I would stay, along with my family, at Oranmore Castle with Alec and Leonie, and we all became good friends, doing several projects over the years.' The first of these projects was Frankie's next album Selected Jigs and Reels , which we eventually signed to Decca. I had become Head of Promotion for the label. I brought Roger Perry over to do great pictures in the castle, which went on the posters and album cover. From then on, there were myriad albums and a few tours and festivals. Maura O'Connell joined the group and recorded the Song for Ireland album in Windmill Lane Studio, but then — before release — Maura left. That was when a young Mary Black… I reminded Frankie that we'd brought Mary to London and, in Livingston Studios in Wood Green, we took Maura's voice off the multi-tracks and recorded Mary. I still think her version of Song for Ireland is the absolute best, and it was great to film you all performing it in a 'summer sunset' for the Windmill Lane Co-Production TV programme. I still have the large 2-inch master tapes. Around that time, I was coordinating the music for the big TV drama series for Channel Four and PBS in America, The Irish RM , with Peter Bowles, Beryl Reid and Bryan Murray, so I brought De Dannan over to Olympic Studios in Barnes to record all the ethnic Irish music elements for the 18-week series. 'That was a lot of fun,' I said to Frankie. 'Although not without De Dannan dramas.' The band were no strangers to drama and legal disputes, including a long, much-publicised spat when Frankie and founder member Alec fell out publicly and did not speak for several years. Fortunately, these two old friends and creative collaborators made their peace before Alec Finn sadly died in November 2018. Previously I had half-jokingly suggested to Frankie that he could be considered the Irish version of John Mayall — as over all these years, so many new young Irish musicians had been given an early break with one of the many De Dannan line-ups and had then gone on to forge their own highly successful careers. And I wondered how he found these new, exceptionally talented musicians. 'Well, some come to me,' he said, 'but then somebody would tip me off and say, listen, check out so-and-so. I mean, wait until you hear this team that are playing with me this evening… I'm back playing music happier than I ever was before, and healthier than I ever was before — happier being the most important detail.' I was soon to discover that this new line-up of the legendary group De Dannan is as creative and inspiring as any from the band's long history and, apart from featuring the inimitable Frankie Gavin on fiddle and flute, it included Diarmuid Ó Meachair (melodeon/button accordion), Ian Kinsella (guitar), Kaitlin Cullen-Verhauz (vocals/cello), and Jack Talty (keys). For sure, they did not disappoint me — or the enthusiastic, knowledgeable audience. An added bonus was to hear the beautiful voice of Kaitlin, who gave us moving renditions of a Percy French song as well as an emotional interpretation of Follow Me Up to Carlow — a song usually sung by men. Once again, Frankie has a great new incarnation of De Dannan and, happily — by the grace of God — we have the reincarnation of the everlasting Frankie Gavin and De Dannan. Frankie tuning up (photo Mick McDonagh) De Dannan: the shape-shifters of Irish traditional IN THE grand constellation of Irish traditional music, a coterie of bands come to mind: the Clancys, the Dubliners, the Chieftains, Planxty, the Bothy Band. Each forged a path that left the tradition both richer and more expansive than they found it. Among them, De Dannan occupies a curious but critical place — a band of brilliant contradictions, shape-shifters who somehow managed to be both radical and rooted, mischievous and masterful. De Dannan emerged just as the Irish folk revival of the 1960s and early 1970s was entering a more experimental phase. With Frankie Gavin's dazzling fiddle at the centre — dexterous, daring — the band quickly carved a distinct sound. Alec Finn's bouzouki, Charlie Piggot's banjo, and Ringo McDonagh's bodhrán created a rhythmic and harmonic bedrock that allowed experimentation to take place on its foundations. If the Dubliners popularised Irish music for the pub and the parlour, and the Chieftains brought it to the concert hall, De Dannan brought it to the cabaret and, occasionally, the circus. They recorded reels at breakneck speeds, borrowed freely from classical and pop, and weren't above throwing in a Beatles cover or a Strauss waltz mid-set. Their 1980s version of Hey Jude on fiddle and harpsichord became a talking point — and a dividing line. Purists scoffed, but others hailed them as genre-benders long before the word existed. Arguably, De Dannan were not as seminal as the Bothy Band in terms of redefining the template of the Irish trad group, nor as foundational as Planxty in blending song and instrumental sophistication. But they were, arguably, more accessible — a gateway for casual listeners who might have found the intensity of the Bothy Band overwhelming or the solemnity of the Chieftains too reverent. What makes De Dannan vital is their role as incubators of talent. Their ever-changing line-up — which has included Maura O'Connell, Dolores Keane, Mary Black, Eleanor Shanley, Johnny Moynihan and others — reads like a roll call of Irish folk royalty. If Planxty was a meeting of minds, and the Bothy Band a supergroup, De Dannan was a finishing school. Frankie Gavin's continuing reinventions of the band — with young musicians alongside him on stage now — underline their enduring legacy. De Dannan may never have had the gravitas of the Chieftains or the mythic status of Planxty, but their contribution to Irish music is no less profound. They were — and still are — proof that tradition doesn't just survive change. It thrives on it. See More: De Dannan, Fiddle Music, Fiddlers, Traditional Irish Music
The Journal
22-07-2025
- Business
- The Journal
Houses, water, health and Metrolink: The key points from the National Development Plan
THE GOVERNMENT HAS announced funding proposals for the latest National Development Plan (NDP) this afternoon. The announcement, made at Government Buildings by Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Tánaiste Simon Harris and independent TD Seán Canney, was made at Government Buildings this afternoon. The NDP is the government's long-term plan for what large-scale infrastructure projects will be needed in Ireland over the next five to ten years. This iteration covers the period up to 2035 and sets out a total investment of €275.4 billion. Advertisement Every few years, the development plans are re-worked and reviewed by governments to ensure there are plans in place to meet things like housing needs to account for Ireland's growing population. The plans also cover demands on public transport and roads and whether people have adequate health services now and into the future. The plans are often ambitious and sometimes described as 'wish lists' by ministers. However, under the current government, ministers were instructed to submit projects that could be delivered in the short- to medium-term, rather than ideas that might never see the light of day (as has been the case in the past). There are also concerns that Ireland is playing catch-up with the rest of Europe when it comes to infrastructure, which is why a key focus in this NDP is housing , along with water infrastructure and Ireland's energy sector . So, what's in it? Housing The government plans to invest €35.955 billion in housing from 2026 to 2030. €28.275 billion of this has been assigned to housing itself and €7.680 billion to water infrastructure. Describing housing as the 'most critical priority' for the Government, the Taoiseach outlined a target of 300,000 new homes. The 300,000 includes privately developed homes and the figure reaffirms the target contained in the Programme for Government. Of those new homes the Government has set a target of delivering an annual average of 12,000 new build social housing units by 2030. Water (inc sewerage, water services) Including funding from outside today's NDP allocation, a total of €12 billion has been released and earmarked specifically for critical water infrastructure investment. Martin said that increased investment in water facilities is 'critical' to meeting demand for more infrastructure. 'This is critical to meet the heightened pace of demand for infrastructure due to increased economic growth and will support new house building industrial development and regional growth,' Martin said. The government's ability to meet its housing targets has been called into doubt by economists who have raised concerns about the state's ability to provide the infrastructure needed to serve housing developments, most notably water. Related Reads Roads, houses and water: Ireland's biggest ever infrastructure plan to be announced today Members of the media at today's annnouncement. Eamonn Farrell / © Eamonn Farrell / © / © Transport (roads, public transport) The government plans to invest €24.33 billion in transport between 2026 and 2030. This includes €2 billion from the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund (ICNF) that is being allocated to 'low-carbon transportation' projects – in particular, the MetroLink underground line for Dublin . The MetroLink would see an underground rail line running between the north and south of Co Dublin, with stops in the suburbs, the city centre and at Dublin Airport. An underground rail line for Dublin was first proposed in a government plan in 2005 but was shelved for several years during the recession. It's now expected that construction may not begin until at least 2028 . Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the total investment will go to 'extending public transport, improving road networks and road safety, promoting electrification and supporting active travel and greenways'. Health The health service is to receive €9.25 in infrastructure investment under the new National Development plan from 2026 through to 2030. In 2021 just €5.7 bn was committed to spending on healthcare infrastructure for 2021-2025. The Government said that this 'substantially enhanced' provision will support the delivery of 'equitable' health services around the country. Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has sought funding for further work on the introduction of an electronic health record and other digitalisation projects, which was also a key focus for the last NDP. The proposed Metrolink project. Climate and energy Exchequer funding of €5.6 billion has been earmarked for infrastructure spending by the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications. The government is increasing its equity shareholdings in ESB and EirGrid to the value of €2 billion and €1.5 billion with a view to enabling the companies to 'significantly increase capital investment to expand electricity transmission and distribution network infrastructure'. 'Even though there are many countries internationally who are pushing to move in the opposite direction, we believe that the climate crisis is acute and addressing it must remain a priority,' the Taoiseach said. Martin said expanded investment in energy infrastructure and diversifying sources of energy are 'critical to our national security and to realising the enormous potential AI to future economic development'. Increased investment in energy infrastructure is also an important part of the government's plans to address the housing crisis, Martin said. Reporting by Christina Finn, Daragh Brophy, Lauren Boland, Eoghan Dalton, David MacRedmond and Eimer McAuley. 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