James Bannon (Fine Gael)

We are obliged to sort out the major cock-up made by the previous Minister but that should be done independently. His railroading of an e-voting system that was blatantly flawed posed a real threat to our democracy. Its long drawn out storage poses a serious threat to the public purse.

When will the Minister of State publicly admit that the machines purchased by his predecessor are not viable and when will the taxpayer be let off the hook? He should stop expecting our hardworking citizens to pay for the storage of these dinosaurs, for that is what they are. In May 2004, while speaking on the Electoral Bill 2004, I said that e-voting would not be introduced in June 2004 and that a question mark hung over the area of e-voting. What is new? E-voting lost the confidence of the public. The equipment, which the previous Minister tried to foist on us last year, never had nor will have the confidence of the public. It is time to return to the drawing board. The provisions of the Electoral Act 1997 need to be reviewed and public acceptance of e-voting should be sought.