Dáil debates

Wednesday, 20 September 2017

Social Welfare, Pensions and Civil Registration Bill 2017: Second Stage (Resumed)

 

8:25 pm

Photo of Mick BarryMick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

I want to address the issue of the public services card. Section 5 of the Bill allows for the public services card to have dates of birth on it at the request of the cardholder. The card can then be used as ID with non-State bodies, banks, etc. Currently, the card does not have a date of birth and cannot be used as ID with non-State bodies. We oppose the use of the public services card as ID as it can become another step towards a national ID card by the back door. This provision is a definite step in that direction as it will explicitly allow the card be used as ID. The comments of the law lecturer, T. J. McIntyre, are interesting and worth noting. He said, "Our position would be that the Public Services Card has been introduced as an identity card by stealth, and that it isn't allowed by law."

The public services card contains very sensitive data, including sensitive data such as biometric information, date of birth and PPSN. The databases behind the card are linked to, or will be linked to, a variety of important public services. Therefore, the databases behind the card will have highly sensitive information such as address and previous addresses, family information, tax information, medical information, applications for grants and so forth. Who will have access to this information? Thousands of people could potentially have access, which increases the chances of abuse of the data and increases the chances of leaks.

The data is so sensitive that if a leak did occur, it would give access to permanent data such as biometric data on people. There is also no guarantee that the data will not be transferred to outside agencies, private companies and so forth that are supplying public services, which leads to further security risks. Data is also big business. In Ireland alone, €445 million was spent on digital advertising. Having information on potential customers is vital in this context. Can we see a situation where this data is traded as a commodity like any other? In the UK, an NHS trust in London sold information on patients to DeepMind, a subsidiary of Google. The data included sensitive patient records. This was found to be illegal in the courts. However, it shows the potential abuses that could be happen.

Data protection legislation contains the principle that data should only be collected that is proportionate to its use. The public services card is far from this. There is no need to collect the range of data that is collected in order to prove one's identity when availing of a public service. For example, there is no need for biometric data in order to avail of a driving test or to get access to the Revenue Online Service. Another principle is that data should not be held indefinitely.

Normally, in data protection laws, data need to be deleted when no longer needed. This is not the case with the card where the data is held indefinitely after first use. Another principle is that it should only be used for a defined purpose. It has already been flagged that it will be needed for a whole extra range of services. A list reported in thejournal.iewhich comes from an internal survey of Government Departments says many services have been flagged, including Revenue, SUSI grants, motor tax, health patient verification and even visitors to prisons. International experience is that the use of cards expands over time. For example, Belgium is currently expanding its card for use in libraries.

The Government position on whether it is compulsory or obligatory is positively Orwellian in its language. Over the summer, Deputy Regina Doherty stated, "Let’s be very clear. Nobody is required by law to have a card. So, therefore, it isn’t compulsory, but for my Department it's mandatory." There are severe consequences for not availing of the card. It would result in no welfare payments, no passport and no driving licence. Therefore, it is obligatory unless one is rich enough to never need a welfare payment and does not wish to drive or leave the country. There have been media reports about how a woman in her 70s had her pension cut off as she did not avail of the card. It was cut off for 18 months, costing her €13,000. That was reported in The Irish Timeson 23 August. The woman said that she felt bullied. Age Action said that it was very concerned that the new mandatory requirement for the card would lead to older people losing their entitlements. We want to put those arguments against it and those objections on the record. The Dáil will hear more from us with regard to this issue if that proposal is not put where it belongs, which is in the bin.

I want to comment briefly on ESRI proposals to increase the pension age to 70. The pension age is already 68, or is in the pipeline to be 68 by 2028. The argument that is used to justify this is that people are living longer. If there was an economic system which was healthy, progressive and creating more wealth on a year-by-year basis, it would take life expectancy in its stride and handle pensions on the older basis. It is a sign of a stagnating, regressing economic system, a stagnating, regressing capitalism that it cannot absorb increased life expectancy within the framework of the old pension system, and puts forward proposals such as this, which serve to drag society backwards. What would the impact be on workers in stressful jobs having to keep working until the age of 70? What would be the position and the impact on people who have to engage in hard physical labour as part of their jobs, who would retire at 70 if this proposal comes through? What impact will it have on unemployment and unemployment levels for young people? It is negative in all respects. Therefore, we would like to issue a clear call to the trade union movement to join this debate, take this issue up and campaign strenuously and seriously against these proposals, which are backward and offer nothing by way of progress for society or ordinary working people.

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