THE INTRODUCTION of a public services card at a cost of more than €24 million will save the taxpayer money by helping to combat social welfare fraud and improving services, the Minister for Social Protection has said.
Éamon Ó Cuív said the rollout of the card from January would lead to a dramatic improvement in the detection of welfare fraud.
The Irish Council for Civil Liberties has expressed reservations about the plan. Its director, Mark Kelly, said the card scheme may “compound the privacy threats posed by PPS numbers, not address them, tying PPS and other personal information to a physical card that people may eventually be obliged to carry.
“Ireland cannot afford to squander €25 million on this unproven scheme,” Mr Kelly added.
Mr Ó Cuív said the card “has the exact same type of features as a modern Irish passport. That means you can’t claim using double identities and, once the card is scanned through the software, you will only get the payment or service you are entitled to,” he added.
Nearly three million cards will be issued to people over the age of 16 and each applicant will be obliged to register. The rollout is expected to take several months.
Conservative estimates say welfare fraud has cost the State close to €5 billion over the last 10 years.
Allegations that some people have been claiming welfare in both the Republic and Northern Ireland and in Border counties will be tested under the new initiative.
This issue was brought to public attention last year when data in the small Co Cavan village of Ballyconnell showed it had a population of 747 in the 2006 census yet the number of people claiming welfare payments there at the start of 2009 had reached 1,044.