Minister for the Environment Dick Roche will be asked today by TDs and Senators how he intends to update the electoral register in time for the next general election.
Chairman of the Oireachtas Environment Committee Seán Haughey said yesterday he would press Mr Roche for full details of his plans at a meeting of the committee today.
Mr Roche has asked to meet the committee to explain his plans to update the register, which all parties accept contains a substantial number of inaccuracies.
"We all know what needs to be done, and the department have put forward plans for the updating of the electoral register, but I will be pressing the Minister to explain exactly how he intends these plans to work and the timescale he has in mind," Mr Haughey said in a statement.
"This problem has snowballed over a number of years, and the time has come for a serious and concerted overhaul of the system.
"This then needs to be followed by a consistent pattern of renewal to prevent this problem occurring again."
He said last December the all-party committee had agreed that the use of PPS numbers should be seriously considered as a means of updating the register.
"I look forward to hearing the Minister's views on this. The electoral register is the foundation of our democratic process, and any anomalies in it need to be addressed as a matter of urgency."