THE Irish government has launched an inquiry into why a large number of civil servants accessed state files on Dolores McNamara following her €115m lottery win.

Officials at the Department of Social and Family Affairs have discovered there were up to 150 hits on McNamara’s welfare files after she scooped the EuroMillions prize. Departmental managers are now asking civil servants to explain why they opened her records.

While a small number of staff may have genuine reasons, it is believed the majority did not and could have broken data protection laws and department rules. Civil servants face disciplinary action or even criminal prosecution if they cannot show good cause for accessing the Limerick woman’s details.

The investigation was ordered after McNamara’s social welfare history was reported in detail by the media. The amount of social welfare payments she supposedly received, including specific dates, were published. The figures and dates, if correct, suggested the information could only have come from someone extremely close to her, or from someone with access to her social welfare records.

Well-placed sources have revealed that, as a result of the media reports, staff at the Department of Social and Family Affairs’ offices throughout the country have been called into special meetings and warned by supervisors about probing files without cause.

Staff who looked at McNamara’s files have also been questioned. The department’s computer system can identify what computers have been used to access people’s files.

The department is thought to be concerned about the possibility of legal action from McNamara, and the inquiry was ordered in part to forestall this.

The department said it could not comment on individual cases, but said last week that it had informed staff it would be carrying out “a detailed review of the access they have to systems and data”. It added: “The department does have a large number of systems dealing with the majority of people in the state for one reason or another. Most of these systems have a query facility . . . We have a programme and policy in place to ensure that staff are aware of their responsibility in regard to the confidentiality, use and protection of customers’ personal information. We regard any breach of these obligations extremely seriously and have recently reminded staff that breaches will be treated as a disciplinary matter and may be subject to criminal prosecution.”

McNamara, 45, a mother of six, scooped the prize in late July. Details of her welfare history appeared in newspapers in early August. One report claimed that she was being investigated for social welfare fraud and alleged she had been claiming payments while working. It is understood, however, that McNamara is not under investigation by the department and her friends say the accusations are false.

One newspaper claimed she had been drawing the lone parent’s allowance since 1992 and that it totalled €190.30. It said she received €77.40 in unemployment benefit from November 3 until June 20 of this year. This figure was said to have been calculated according to complex rules after her lone parent’s allowance was taken into consideration. It said “records” also showed that McNamara was in receipt of unemployment benefits from January 15 to July 14 of 2004.

According to sources, only about a dozen of the civil servants who logged on to McNamara’s files had a justifiable reason to do so. Most of these were stationed in welfare offices in Limerick and may have been ensuring that she would not receive any further welfare payments after her huge windfall.

It is understood some staff have said others must have used their log-on to get into McNamara’s files.

Civil servants at other government departments and agencies, such as Fas, have access to the same records but is not known if the current inquiry will consider this. Fas said it was not aware of the matter and it had nothing to do with its staff.

The Department of Social and Family Affairs said it was considering reducing the access other bodies have to welfare records. “Our system was developed for internal purposes but, since we have a number of agencies such as Fas, working with us, they have to have access as well,” it said.

Lawyers for McNamara last week declined to comment on the matter. It is understood that she was hugely upset at her welfare history coming into the public domain and met with lawyers to discuss the matter.

McNamara, who wants to remain in her Limerick bungalow, is now Ireland’s 72nd richest person, having worked as a cleaner prior to her big win.

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