Written answers

Wednesday, 20 September 2017

Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection

Public Services Card

Photo of Mick WallaceMick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

63. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if a cost benefit analysis was carried out by her Department regarding the public services card; if so, the date on which this will be published; the amount her Department has saved by preventing social welfare fraud through the roll-out of the public services card; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39596/17]

Photo of Regina DohertyRegina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Given the innovative nature of the project and the fact that there weren’t any ready references for comparison purposes in the early 2000s, it was not possible in the early stages of the project to determine precise costs and staffing requirements, and thereby develop a full cost benefit analysis. Accordingly, the Department developed the project in phases and prepared costs and staffing requirements once they became known through these various phases. The first phase of the project from 2005 to 2007 involved the research and design of a card, the development of the detailed functional specification required for the Public Services Card (PSC), and a project proposal for the development and deployment of the PSC and associated infrastructure. In 2007, the second phase, to procure a managed services contract for the production of the card, began and was completed in 2009. This then provided the Department with definitive costs for this element of the project.The third phase was the operation of a trial or pilot to test how registration processes and card production facilities would work in practice. Once this was completed in 2011, it was then possible to determine the staffing levels that would be required to undertake the customer registration processes countrywide. It would not have been possible to determine the staffing requirement in advance of this phase. The fourth phase was implementation which began gradually as resources became available and registration infrastructure was deployed.

There are significant benefits to the individual and public bodies in this project. The idea behind the PSC and its underlying identity verification process is to provide public bodies with significant assurance as to the identity of individuals they are providing services to and to provide individuals with greater assurance that their identity can’t be used by anybody else in dealings with public bodies. Therefore, with the PSC –

-Identity verification to a substantial level of assurance is now completed on a “once and done” basis – by one public body – and all others do not have to develop and implement identity registration processes and technologies.

-It reduces the number of people who can fraudulently claim to be someone else.

-It is a secure card and considerably reduces the potential for forgery.

-It acts as a major deterrent to perpetrate fraud.

-It allows public bodies to offer high value and personalised services online using MyGovID – an online identity verification solution.

-It reduces or will eliminate the need for multiple cards, e.g., where people previously had a social services card, a free travel pass, and may have had to provide photo ID in the collection of payments or accessing public transport, they now need just a PSC.

Since the introduction of the PSC, my Department has detected 146 cases of suspected identity fraud have been referred to the Department’s Special Investigation Unit (SIU). Of these, 64 cases have been concluded with 21 finalised in Court (where 18 of them received a custodial sentence), 15 not proceeded with (mainly due to the person leaving the jurisdiction), and 28 with formal proceedings issued and awaiting court appearance. Fraud overpayments of €3 Million have been assessed in these 64 cases. The other 82 cases are under investigation or at various stages of the prosecution process. Assessments will be determined for these (and any others that materialise in the future) as they are brought to conclusion.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.