Frank Fahey (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

The Department is taking the matter seriously and has referred it to the Attorney General. I assure the Senator that it is being actively looked at by the Department.

I do not quite understand Senator McDowell's point. It is a complex issue and there are other negative aspects in relation to a central database, such as the possibility of fraud and so on. It is a complex issue which has to be looked at carefully. The legal implications are not as simple as the Senator has indicated and that is why it is being considered by the Attorney General and will be further considered by the Minister, perhaps, as the Senator has suggested, with a view to its being introduced after a number of years if it is found that the legal complexities can be overcome.