Results 68,781-68,800 of 74,100 for speaker:Bernard Durkan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: General Scheme of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: Fairly regularly, we get complaints against various financial bodies. Not all of them are referred to the FSPO. From time to time, though, the advice we get is that complaints should be. Since such complaints remain in the ether for a long time and continue as issues as far as the complainants are concerned, is there any way for the FSPO to intervene unilaterally where there appears to be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: General Scheme of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: I was thinking along those lines and I understand the answer. Finally, if someone in the FSPO reads in the media that a particular issue has arisen between a financial institution and a private citizen, can the FSPO inveigle its way into that debate or influence the level of debate between the two sides, given that the situation will continue in the general atmosphere as a complaint until...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: General Scheme of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: Can a regulator refer something like that to the FSPO?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: General Scheme of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: The regulator.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: General Scheme of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: This will definitely be my last question. Has the FSPO noticed an increase or decrease in the number of complaints coming to it about investment funds or, as they are sometimes called, vulture funds where they impact on the individual in a severe way that seemingly cannot be resolved?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: General Scheme of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: I thank the witnesses for attending and giving us of their time and expertise in this area. I also thank the members of the committee for their input.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: I thought I was first. The Deputy must have changed his mind.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: Maybe my name was misspelled. I welcome our guests and thank them for their presentation. I have a number of questions. On confidentiality, are we satisfied that the new system, when it is in full operation, will be absolutely confidential as regards the availability of information to the constituent, patient or user of services and, equally, those in the medical profession who need to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: In the context of the protection of that information, are we satisfied that adequate provisions are in place to ensure we can deter a cyber-raid, or something similar to the most recent attack we experienced?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: Have we a system or systems in place to isolate an attack in the event it takes place? In other words, can we ensure the attacker does not have access to the entire system to use at his at her leisure? Have we a means of freezing certain segments of the system so an attacker can go no further? Is that part of our defence?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: The potential attacker in such situations will always be alert to the insulation of firewalls that will, as I stressed, isolate and limit the attack. Is the Department satisfied that we have sufficient provision in place to ensure that is developed to the maximum extent? I know the officials cannot guarantee that, but the degree of success or failure of the whole system will depend on the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: Whose area is it?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: The Department is reverting to the use of PPS numbers as a patient identifier. That extends to all areas, I presume.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: I know that date of birth is one of the things referred to all the time - or not all the time, as was said - so this will be of tremendous benefit. Has the Department got over the objections in the past to the use of a single identifier? Is Mr. O'Connor satisfied that all the way has been smoothed for that purpose?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: As regards the black hole to which Mr. O'Connor referred between the private and the public systems, is he satisfied that that has been sufficiently covered in the course of the proposals? Is he happy that information will be available to the appropriate people and the patient as and when necessary, and quickly, without an untoward delay?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: I am a little worried in spite of the assurances. I do not think answers are being given. I do not think they can be given in certain instances. For example, many people regard their PPSN as private personal information. I cannot understand that has to be supplied or put it into the chain or system so that a multiplicity of organisations can access it. Many organisations can and do...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: I realise it is important that the maximum amount of information be made available to the appropriate authority, whatever it may be. There may be a multiplicity of such authorities in these circumstances, however. There may be several hospitals or health institutions, for example. Depending on the security system that is in place, that can be successful or widely abused. From past...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: And getting longer. The big problem used to be to making sure you wrote to the right person and got a reply. It was always difficult to get a reply. Some of those present might remember those days. I devised a system that let me know at a glance when and to whom the letter was written, the number of times the person was reminded and the result. Up until a few years ago, a coded number...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health Information Bill 2023: Department of Health (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: We must recognise at the same time that the country was previously governed by the USSR and that different traditions prevail still.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Examination of EU Fiscal Rules (Resumed): Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (10 May 2023)

Bernard Durkan: On behalf of the committee, I welcome from the IFAC Mr. Sebastian Barnes, chairman, Dr. Eddie Casey, chief economist, Mr. Brian Cronin, economist and Mr. Killian Carroll, economist. It is important to note, in terms of parliamentary privilege, that people cannot say whatever they want about whomsoever they might want, even within the confines of this committee room. Full privilege is...