Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The fact that the identity is known to the Department is part of the issue. The second, fifth and sixth findings in the report are of relevance in this regard. The sixth finding relates to people being clear about the consequences. The second relates to how people's data are used. The Data Protection Commissioner found that people were not adequately informed about how their data would be tracked and used. The introduction to the report makes it dead clear that this is not simply about privacy, or about who can or cannot identify someone. It is about control. A person's data is his or her data. My travel is my travel. The fact that I am going from place to place is my information. The fact that I go to Wexford every week is my information. It is one thing to know that someone has used the card. It is another thing to be able to track where someone has used it. The Minister has told us that it is possible to determine that it has been used in a certain place. There is an issue with adequate information. Does the Minister believe that every person who had to get a card in order to get a travel pass was clearly informed that the Department would be able to know about every journey he or she took and would be able to track that information?