Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Can the Tánaiste clarify if there are proposals to amend the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act 2005? Section 262 of that Act contains the parameters around which personal public service, PPS, numbers may be given to third party institutions. It refers to the Minister having to sanction any such use by a third party and weigh up that request on its merits before agreeing to it. I do not see anything on the Department's website to indicate it has gone through that process. There is a reference on Irish Water's website to the effect that the arrangement for such has not yet been finalised. Considering the current furore, this is another aspect of the policy commitment of Government to Irish Water and the way in which it is carrying out those policy directions. I am in the same boat as Irish Water. It appears that such an arrangement has not yet been finalised and people are very concerned about the use of their PPS numbers and the manner in which they may be used in the future, considering the threat that many believe still exists, namely, the potential or possibility of that entity being privatised in the future.

See this speech in context