Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

A total of 60% of payments to social welfare clients are made through direct payment. When innovative technologies are used or promoted by the Department, it should be highlighted at the bottom of all correspondence with clients in a note stating "Please note that this new facility is available if you would like to avail of it". It is an optional extra and it would be good advertising by the Department. Notices are regularly sent by Departments and it would be a good way to circulate this information rather than sending a letter to a few clients. If people get a letter and their neighbours do not, that will scare them. They will wonder why they were singled out and that is enough to scare people. However, the letter at the centre of this debate should not have scared people and there were unintended consequences. It would be more economical to highlight information about new services and so on as a titbit at the bottom of the letters regularly sent to social welfare clients, as it would be good advertising and promotion when new facilities become available.

Many elderly people are proficient in computing and they do their banking online, Skype their children and so on. We must move with the times. Public libraries provide free Internet and computer courses for people. Years ago, we could say that not everyone had access to a computer and while it is still the case that not everyone does, library facilities enable more people to have access.