Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This Bill seeks to address data protection issues around the introduction of a postal code service. Data protection is in need of real safeguards, especially as the digital economy expands and the threat of surveillance and citizen scrutiny grows simultaneously with it. Embracing technological advances can seem intimidating, but the digital economy demands that we get smarter with our information. Ireland is the only European country and one of a few OECD countries that does not have a national postcode system of some kind, as the Minister outlined in his introduction. The introduction of this proposed system will change that completely, making Ireland the first country to have a system of unique postcodes. It is already cited as a world first and future-proofed, and despite a few objections to the introduction of this system, most people seem reasonably in favour.

I understand that two models were up for consideration: a cluster-based, non-unique postcode system, similar to the one used in the UK, and a unique identifier system in which postcodes would consist of seven randomised characters assigned uniquely to each address in the State. The Department determined that the cluster-based, non-unique postcode system was not suitable for Ireland because of the exceptional situation in rural Ireland with regard to non-unique addresses, with up to 60% of addresses in rural areas being non-unique. In Donegal, for example, this includes situations in which there is more than one person in a townland with the same name and address and, as any Deputy from a rural constituency knows, the current system relies heavily on the use of local knowledge to deliver a letter, parcel or service.

The more I look into this proposal, the less I see its relevance. I say this because the success of this system depends on the level of uptake among the business community and the population. However, there will be no legal obligation on private organisations or businesses to use Eircode, as it is known. An Post will not be making the use of the Eircode mandatory and expects never to make it mandatory. Furthermore, it is up to individuals themselves to use the code or not to use it. Because local knowledge has been an integral part of the delivery service, there will be confusion about adopting this code. While the routing key will be used to help sort mail, it is not directly linked to counties, towns or geographic features. Therefore, many people may be surprised that their code has no relation to their actual location and their neighbour might have an entirely different arrangement of numbers. While Donegal people might expect "DL" to be part of the code, this will not be the case.

If this type of system is being used mainly to cater for the large number of non-unique addresses in rural Ireland, how does the Government expect the system to become the norm in service provision, which is reliant on addresses, and communities that are reliant on local knowledge?

Concerns have been expressed that Eircode will not be any more helpful than traditional addresses in helping to find the scenes of accidents and incidents because each code will be randomly created. Unless a caller knows the postcode of the location they are in no nearby postcode will be of any use as it will not bear any relation to the one they are trying to direct emergency groups to. Some freight and courier firms have objected to the use of this code because their delivery system is based around a cluster system. They feel that when dealing with bulk deliveries a randomised code would not work alongside their information systems and that there would probably be compatibility problems in trying to interpret the database that will be available on the internet to find addresses and postcodes.

Meath County Council has also objected to its introduction because it claims other already available information systems exist which are more appropriate to the work it does. For example, Loc8 is a service which can help locate illegal dumping and icy roads, which is vital information for local authorities. Other satellite versions can provide relevant information according to users.

I welcome the introduction of technological advances to service provision, especially in our public services, as long as the service remains committed to the needs of the community. We do not want to see what is currently happening with An Post, where proposed innovative solutions in service provision are in fact disempowering a vital institution.

The Government could commit more to working with the Irish Postmasters’ Union to promote its role in an ever-changing and modernising society. One such way is to engage in the development of a standard bank account to be provided through the network. This would initially need State funding. Considering the proposed cost of Eircode, I cannot see why a project like a standard bank account could not be supported as well.

The previous Minister, Deputy Rabbitte, said a Government sub-committee was set up to expand and develop the post office network and service. However, the Government’s move towards direct electronic transfer of welfare payments is a technological advancement which is disempowering a public service provider. In recent days, the Department of Social Protection has changed its forms for social welfare applications to direct people to avail of electronic payments to banks and move them away from post offices. How does that fit in with the views of the Minister and the sub-committee on post office services and how to develop and expand them? It does not fit and it moves those who are outside the banking system into it, which does not benefit them. It also undermines the roll-out of the standard bank account that has been approved by the Department of Finance, which has been reluctant to include the post office in the scheme.

The Government's move towards electronic transfer payments is essentially removing this business from post offices and handing it to the commercial banks. Hundreds of offices will close if we move fully towards direct electronic transfer. This move also transfers the cost of the payment to welfare recipients, through bank charges, while collection is without cost at post offices.

In terms of data protection, which the Bill addresses, the previous Data Protection Commissioner, Billy Hawkes, stated before he stepped down that he was concerned that a single code for each house risked possible data privacy breaches. There was a number of concerns that the code could be considered as part of an individual’s personal information.

The unique seven character postcode goes beyond what is an address. Through the use of modern technology and big data, it can be easily assimilated into any sort of electronic device or dataset which could in turn be used for any purpose from State intervention to commercial profit. I am glad to see a provision in the Bill which places the requirement on the postal contractor and re-sellers to publish on their websites privacy notices informing the public of, amongst other things, the background to postcodes and the source of types of data included in the postcode databases.

I also welcome the establishment of a complaints procedure by the postal contractor and the preparation of a code of practice concerning the retention of data related to postcode databases by the postal contractor. However, if we had not introduced such a unique system, all of the cumbersome administration to use a postcode system would not be required. There are downsides because the system will have to be policed and managed. There will probably be a large volume of complaints to the Data Protection Commissioner about the use or potential misuse of these codes.

While this Bill is a positive attempt at modernising the post service, at closer inspection the application of the postcode model risks becoming redundant. I also question how the Government is thinking. Is it thinking local or global? Are we certain that Eircode will be relevant to rural dwellers? Will it be useful to them, especially when local knowledge is so much a part of the current system?

If the Government is thinking globally then I feel this world-first and future-proof model risks missing the point if it is not picked up by enough stakeholders. Other less risky initiatives could make Ireland more modern and up-and-coming, such as investing widely in broadband, something we constantly raise in the House.

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