Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

This is the same issue. I do not wish to impugn the commitment of any Minister or to put forward an expectation that any Minister would act. A very clear example of this is the very serious concerns expressed by the data commissioner in respect of the roll-out of the public services card. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection intensified the roll-out of the public services card while serious question marks had been raised, and continue to be raised, and are still under investigation. This is one of the most serious forms of concern that the data commissioner can raise. This is not a hypothetical situation. This is a reality. There will be moments of tension between the data commissioner and what Ministers and Departments would like to do. It is appropriate that there would be absolute transparency around where the tensions are and how the issues might be addressed.