Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner is concerned about plans to create a national public services identity card, the Irish Times reports. A spokesman for the DPC says the commissioner is engaged in "extensive consultations" with the Department of Social and Family Affairs about its plans to create the card. The spokesman said the DPC's primary concerns would be related to the inclusion of PPS numbers on the cards, which, combined with other personal information could make it a "de facto national ID card." But, the spokesman said, "it is clear from our discussions that the department does not intend this." Still, the commissioner feels that "any move towards what might be viewed as a national ID card should only take place following an appropriate public debate."
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