Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

While local authorities are currently required to conduct door-to-door inquiries, Deputy Cuffe was correct to say standards vary from authority to authority. I will put it no stronger than that. The process has always been decentralised and I am not disposed to centralising every activity. I would prefer, with reference to Deputy O'Dowd's contribution, if local authorities did their job more efficiently and that we introduced a system to make sure that happened.

Deputy Cuffe referred to voter security and the use of personal public service numbers. While I am aware of the procedures operated in the North of Ireland, to introduce the cross-check Deputy Cuffe mentioned would, especially on voting day, require an information technology link between the Department of Social and Family Affairs and the electoral database. A number of issues, including data protection, would arise with this approach. Nonetheless, I am open to considering any proposal which offers security in voting, has the potential to make the process more open and transparent and ensures the register is properly prepared. Whether we accept the number of surplus polling cards issued is 300,000 or 800,000 as hypothesised in the article referred to by Deputy O'Dowd, it is simply not good enough to have a significant level of error in the electoral register. I will impress on local authorities the need to carry out the job more effectively as the process of compiling the electoral register for next year continues.

We are producing guidelines which I will make available in draft form to the joint committee this autumn. As we all share the same concern, I am prepared to sit down with any Member to discuss how to improve matters.

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