Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Taoiseach for his reply. There appears to be conflicting accounts from his office on this matter. My understanding is that, as he said, the practice has been that he and the political staff of his Department are given access to encrypted communications on a limited range of devices, including laptop computers. The objective has been to control tightly how official documents and information is handled. The Taoiseach might indicate why he thinks there is a need to operate a separate account. Is this for personal matters? What steps have been taken to ensure that all documentation is preserved in accordance with the requirements of freedom of information legislation? Has the Taoiseach submitted his e-mails to any security review? Have the arrangements of his staff been reviewed?

The backdrop to this is the very strong, conclusive evidence of hacking against democratic Governments and political parties across the globe. We are in a new era. The core question is whether the existing system in the Taoiseach's Department and across Government is adequate to cope with the present challenges. Is there a need for people to be fundamentally brought up to speed on the present dangers or the capacity of other states and organisations not only to hack into and disrupt our systems, but also to obtain vital information to undermine aspects of State policy, for example, or to create political mischief? This is a very real situation and a new avenue for espionage and cyber-warfare. I endeavour to ascertain from the Taoiseach whether he is satisfied that our system is fit for purpose in the context of the challenges democratic Governments now face regarding the security of their IT systems, in particular in respect of e-mail accounts and so on. There is the official route of encryption of official documents and so on but also the separate matter of the use of unofficial e-mails. What is the Taoiseach's perspective on this?

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