Ireland's Department of Finance discusses upcoming Budget Investment Account plans with pillar banks and urges joint action on child abuse paywalls

Ireland's Department of Finance said Finance Minister Simon Harris met AIB, Bank of Ireland and Permanent TSB to discuss the planned new Investment Account framework and concerns that child abuse material is increasingly being hidden behind paywalls to evade detection. Harris said government, financial institutions, the police and technology companies need to work together more closely to disrupt these criminal networks, and the meeting also covered the wider need to combat online fraud. On the investment side, Harris said he plans to introduce a new Investment Account in the upcoming Budget. He described the measure as a way to make investing simpler, clearer and more accessible for ordinary households and to support better long-term returns on savings. He also said he intends to bring the National Financial Literacy Strategy to government shortly, which he linked to the development of a retail investment culture in Ireland.