Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The intention from the inception of this project, for want of a better word, was never to make accessing public services more difficult. It was always to try to make it more efficient and, in the main, I believe it has done that. I would regret if anybody finds it more difficult to access public services by the use of electronically communicating or using the public services card as an identifier.

I am not sure where school transport appeals came into the narrative. A public services card has no place and never has had a place in school transport appeals. It does not form part of that process whatsoever. I believe that just developed over the last number of weeks or months as an example but it has never been used. The production of a public services card is not a requirement for anybody to make an appeal of a school transport decision that has been made. As I have always stated, this is an overarching Government policy to try to make public services easier and more efficient to deliver on behalf of each and every Department but every Minister is responsible for making the decisions on how they deliver those efficient services entirely for their own Department.

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