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

On the cybersecurity issue, it seems to me from all I have heard from various interests and observations from other countries that Ireland is vulnerable to cybersecurity threats. Will the Taoiseach indicate to the House the strength within our Defence Forces in terms of cybersecurity and their capacity, given their retention and recruitment crisis, to deal with a cybersecurity threat? My information is that there has been some migration of personnel from the military to the civilian Departments because the pay there is higher and that, to a certain extent, the capacity within our Defence Forces has been reduced and diluted on a consistent basis in this and other areas of specific expertise that the Army, Naval Service and Air Corps require. Will the Taoiseach comment on this matter and the particular strengths that our Defence Forces have in terms of contributing to Ireland's protections against cybersecurity attacks?

I raised a matter relating to the Data Protection Commission on the Order of Business. There has been an unhealthy response to the commission's report. First, there was a reluctance to publish it early enough during the summer. Second, it was suppressed, although it is being published today. We in this House, including the Executive, need to understand and reflect more on the reasons the Data Protection Commission would issue the kind of report that was issued. Whereas the public services card may be desirous and something with which people agree, the Government cannot dictate to the citizens of this country that, just because it thinks the card is a good idea and it will harvest and collect all of their data, their use of the card must be mandatory or compulsory if they want to avail of other services outside of those provided by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.

On the face of it, it seems that the Government and the Department have acted illegally. Of course, they can challenge that and say that they did not, but I would have preferred a more intelligent discussion around the Data Protection Commission's report instead of a knee-jerk reaction that was more about trying to undermine the commission's judgment and the conclusions of the report and to pour scorn on that office, which raises major concerns in the broader perspective. The modern economy and society are about data and the harvesting of same. We must be extremely careful with the rulebook and legal and regulatory framework that we create for it. The Government cannot just lecture and hector those in the private sector about data. It must also be seen to be acting in accordance with best principles.

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