Ireland’s data centre debate is the latest culture war, pitching environmentalists against those who refer to “Ireland Inc” when making their pro-business arguments.

While seemingly endless growth in the tech sector has underpinned official support for the growth in data centres over the past decade – providing a trump card against objectors – the latest wobbles in employment in the sector and challenges in energy generation change the backdrop a bit.

Ireland has bent over backwards to accommodate the multinationals over the years, but what happens now?

The debate is born out of Ireland’s outsize dependence on Big Tech for jobs, many of them well paid, and particularly for corporate tax revenues. Companies like Apple, Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet – Google’s parent – have been significant employers and taxpayers. The green light for data centres has been seen as part of the overall package attracting them to Ireland – and means that the State has a high proportion of European capacity, adjusting for its relatively small size.

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Data centres consume around 22 per cent of the State’s electricity and, at a time of tight supply, are under the microscope. Ireland urgently needs a better roadmap here.

Data centres are part of this. But so too is increasing energy supply more rapidly, primarily from renewables but also vital gas-fired generation. As well as housing and........

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