Seanad debates

Thursday, 28 November 2019

Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters

Closed-Circuit Television Systems Provision

10:30 am

Photo of Tim LombardTim Lombard (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I tabled my Commencement matter as I seek clarification, under the current legislation, regarding the community CCTV scheme pertaining to County Cork. In particular, I would like to know who controls the data and when the schemes will be operational.

I brought this important issue to the floor of the Seanad because several towns in County Cork, including Bandon, have been approved for CCTV systems. Unfortunately, even though a contract has been signed for the past three years, agreement between the local authority and the Department of Justice and Equality as to who controls, owns and operates the data and who pays for the operation of the system has never been clarified. We are dealing with a scenario where a scheme was put in place that gives the local authority the ability to purchase equipment and sign contracts, which they have done. We now have a system but no operational budget has been put in place and the big issue is who controls the data. Is it the Garda Síochána, the Department of Justice and Equality or the local authority?

In the current environment, we are subject to the general data protection regulation, GDPR, and other regulations. The lack of clarification by either the Department or the local authority on this issue means that no CCTV system is operating in Bandon today, which is unfortunate. We have talked about this issue for over a decade yet the systems still have not been delivered. It is unfortunate that local government and the big government in Dublin cannot sit down and sort out the issues that would enable the rolling out of the CCTV system. It is not about making sure that Big Brother is watching society. It is about making sure that when there are anti-social behaviour or litter issues, we can deal with them on the ground. I am very disappointed that we do not have clarity on these issues.

I have read the latest county manager's report that a feasibility study has been put in place on how much it actually costs to run and control the system. Do we need another report three years later without having schemes in place? Enough feasibility studies have been done and we need action. A deep and meaningful conversation must take place immediately between the Department and the local authority in Cork to ensure that the CCTV systems, for which the contracts have been signed, are delivered on the ground, thus benefiting society as a whole.

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