Archive - December 2018

6363: 60 FREE WI-FI HOTSPOTS FOR IRISH COUNTIES

60 free wi-fi hotspots are to be created across Ireland next year.

Counties Carlow, Cavan, Donegal, Galway, Mayo and Limerick are among the counties that will receive four free wi-fi spots each.

Each county will receive four vouchers worth €15,000 from the European Commission to install free public WiFi.

Grace Bolton of the European Commission office in Dublin says the good news is, more free wi-fi hotspots are on the way.

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 19 seconds | Outwords: hashtag WiFi for EU

6365: IRISH TV PROGRAMMES TO BE ACCESSIBLE ONLINE WITHIN THE EU

People living elsewhere in the EU will have online access to most Irish news and current affairs TV programmes from next year.

New rules will make it easier for European broadcasters to make certain programmes available on their live TV or catch-up services online and the distribution of radio and TV channels by retransmission operators will also be simplified. 

41 per cent of Europeans watch TV online with 50 per cent aged 15-24 viewing on a digital device at least once a week.

Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Ireland says this development will make it easier for Irish people elsewhere in the European Union to access certain TV programmes made here.

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 13 seconds | Outwords: 27 member States

6362: NUMBER OF IRISH DISABLED PEOPLE IN EMPLOYMENT IMPROVES

Over one in five Irish people with a disability are currently in paid employment.

A new survey carried out by the Dublin-based EU agency EuroFound, shows that the number of employees with disabilities continues to grow.

Recent CSO figures revealed that over 643,000 people - or 13.5 per cent of Ireland’s population - are registered as being disabled.

Grace Bolton of the European Commission office in Ireland says the number of disabled people in employment is improving but they continue to face obstacles. 

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 14 seconds | Outwords: the overall population

6361: EU REPORTS OVER 100 CASES OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN IRELAND

Over 20,000 men and women and children were victims of trafficking in the European Union according to recent figures from EU member States - with 137 of them brought into Ireland.

Over 68 per cent of the total recorded were women and girls.

The majority were trafficked for sexual exploitation.

Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Dublin says the official figure for Ireland may only be the tip of the iceberg. 

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 14 seconds | Outwords: quarter are children

6360: IRISH WOMEN BEHIND MEN IN EU DIGITAL ECONOMY

Women continue to lag behind men when it comes to participation in the EU digital economy.

New figures show that France, Sweden and Luxembourg have the highest female participation in digital activity.

19 per cent of Irish women work in the digital economy which is above the EU average of 16.7 per cent - putting us ahead of countries like Germany and Italy.

Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Ireland says Irish women are performing well but still lag behind the UK and Nordic countries.

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 14 seconds | Outwords: of the internet

6359: EU PROPOSES BETTER VEHICLE SAFETY FEATURES

The European Commission wants to ensure that all vehicles are fitted with the latest technological safety features.

The Commission has proposed that cars, trucks and buses be equipped with advanced safety features such as sensors to alert drivers to pedestrians, cyclists and oncoming vehicles.

It is also seeking to provide financial assistance to Member States to remedy accident blackspots in order to make roads safer.

Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Ireland says that the Commission wants to extend the use of innovative safety features, which are currently only available to certain consumers. 

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 14 seconds | Outwords: in all vehicles

6357: EU COMMISSION PROTECTS CONSUMERS FROM INTERNET GEO-BLOCKING

There's good news this week for people who shop online.

The European Commission’s rule to prevent unjustified internet geo-blocking takes effect this week.

This means that Irish people can buy products from websites based in other EU Member States without being redirected to an Irish-specific version of that website that often had higher prices. It should also be possible to have goods delivered to Ireland and to pay with an Irish credit or debit card.

Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Ireland says this development will give more choice to consumers and opens new markets to retailers. 

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 16 seconds | Outwords: the companies concerned

6358: IRISH APPLICANTS SOUGHT FOR FREE EU TRAVEL PROGRAMME

The European Commission has launched a second DiscoverEU competition to give over 100 transport passes to young Irish people to travel around the European Union.

Applicants must be 18 years old on December 31st 2018 and be available to travel between April 15th and October 31st 2019 for a maximum period of 30 days.

The deadline to apply is 11am on December 11th and the Commission is encouraging more young people with special needs to apply for this round of the competition.

Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Ireland says more details are available at HashtagDiscoverEU.

Interviewee: Grace Bolton | Clip duration: 0 minutes 14 seconds | Outwords: hashtagdiscoverEU