An Irish Government spending review has found the introduction of the controversial Public Services Card, together with online measures to validate the identity of people accessing Government services, had proved highly successful.
The review maintained that the Safe-PSC-MyGovID identity-management framework, which cost €98 million ($A154 million) over a 10-year period to implement, had paid for itself within five years.
It said the system now delivered direct annual savings of more than €20 million ($A31 million).
In its review, the Department of Public Expenditure said the main driver of the positive result was the savings that arose from not having to repeatedly re-verify people’s identities.
It said that if the framework did not exist, then at least 17 million extra identity checks would be required from 2010 to 2030 to deliver the same level of public services.
The card has come under fire from the Data Protection Commission which pointed out that it forces citizens needing service from the Government to obtain it, while its functioning is not sufficiently transparent.
The spending review also found there were 42,525 active employees in the Public Service as at 31 December, 2020.
The Department said that between 2014 and 2020 there had been an average growth rate in the Public Service workforce of about 3.36 per cent per year.
It projected that between 2022 and 2031 about 16,545 staff in the Public Service would retire.
“Significant costs may therefore be expected in respect of new entrants to the Civil Service over coming years,” the Department said.
Dublin, 8 November 2021
