Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 2 Feb 1999

Vol. 499 No. 3

Written Answers - Year 2000 Project.

Liz McManus

Ceist:

99 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if his Department has made adequate provisions to cope with the computer changeovers expected as a result of the year 2000 comptuer bug; if the preparations for this changeover have adversely affected other work in his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2622/99]

Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern):

The project to ensure that computer systems in my Department are year 2000 compliant is well advanced. To date, year 2000 remediation work for all critical systems is over 95 per cent complete and on target to finish by 31 July this year.

My Department is also conducting a series of integration tests with external key service providers who have computer links to the Department. The purpose of such tests is to ensure that these organisations can continue to provide services for, and on behalf of, the Department into the new millennium. This aspect of the project will also be complete by the end of July. In view of the very critical nature of my Department's business, I am also having a full year 2000 business continuity plan prepared for the Department. This plan, which will be delivered in mid 1999, will cover contingency arrangements to be implemented in the event of any disruption to the business caused by the millennium date change. Preparations for the changeover to the new millennium have been very extensive. The Department's year 2000 project, which was initiated in 1996, was planned and managed in a way that ensured there would be no impact on the day to day business of the Department. Because a considerable number of IT staff had to be assigned to the year 2000 project, a number of other projects to improve and update the systems for deliv ery of social welfare payments have had to be deferred. However, there was no disimprovement in service to customers arising from the project.