Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 9, 17 and 30 together.

Considerable progress has been made in the roll-out of the new public service card, PSC. Approximately 580,000 cards have now been produced. The purpose of the PSC is to enable people to gain access to public services more efficiently and with a minimum of duplication of effort, while preserving their privacy to the maximum extent possible. In this regard, the Department has developed, in conjunction with a number of other Departments, a rules based standard for establishing and authenticating an individual’s identity for the purposes of access to public services. The PSC is designed to replace other cards in the public sector such as the free travel pass. Many pensioners have the PSC card with the FT designation indicating free travel. It proves very popular with pensioners to whom it is being rolled out. It will make it easy for providers of public services to verify the identity of customers.

The PSC is issued following a registration process. The legislation provides that an individual’s photograph and signature and the verification of identity data already held by the Department are captured by the card. Existing legislation provides for the collection and storage of photographs or images in this context. The Department has recently deployed facial image matching software to help to detect and deter duplicate SAFE applications. For example, if someone goes in and has a photograph taken, it is matched with the stock of 580,000 photographs on the system. Facial recognition techniques are used to a high level. If someone applies for a PSC in Galway and is already on the departmental system, it will show that the person has a card in Athlone. We receive reports on a weekly basis.

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Provision has not been made for further biometrics and there are no plans to alter the position.

Deputies may wish to note that the introduction of the card can, in addition to providing a more efficient service for customers, also help to deter and prevent irregularities. For example, the new card has led to the identification of 18 cases of facial matches. Some prosecutions are pending as a result and it is estimated that, at a minimum, the level of fraud detected and stopped to date amounts to in excess of €1 million.

Face-to-face registration is taking place countrywide in 55 offices of the Department for individual applicants for a personal public service, PPS, number and people applying for or in receipt of social protection payments or benefits, including jobseeker payments, free travel entitlements, child benefit payments, State pensions and one parent family payments. A table of the relevant locations has been provided for the Deputies.

Selected low-risk customers have also been invited to avail of a "postal" registration process which involves utilisation, with consent, of information already provided for other Government agencies, for example, a photograph supplied in connection with an application for a passport. In addition, selected pensioners over 66 years who collect their payments at a post office will be invited, commencing early next month, to register by post, including providing a passport standard photograph.

The PSC project has been earmarked as a key initiative in the new public service reform plan; the aim is to “expand the use of the PSC to cover a greater range of services”. PSC registration is being expanded to encompass all departmental scheme customers and over time the adult population of Ireland. In this regard, the Department is in discussions with a wide range of other public bodies to extend the client registration service and the use of the PSC. Recently the PSC was included in regulations as an acceptable form of ID for upcoming local and European elections.

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