James Bannon (Fine Gael)

We must be extremely careful on this issue. Several computer professionals have found it impossible to get details of the system from the Department. There was a letter in one of the newspapers yesterday which stated that a person had sought information under the Freedom of Information Act and paid in the region of €1,500 for very little. Seemingly, the Department does not have many facts on the system. Furthermore, the machines it is proposed to use in the elections are only under warranty until 2007. They cannot be repaired after ten years despite the Minister's contention that they will last for 20 years. The claim is simply not true.

As I said last week, Fine Gael agrees with the principle of electronic voting, but it has serious concerns about the software and the availability of the system's source code. The Minister should consider withdrawing electronic voting even at this late stage. There are serious concerns about its security. I would appreciate the further consideration of the matter and of amendment No. 10.