12.— (1) In addition to the duties assigned under section 8 of the Act of 1993, the designated judge shall—

(a) keep the operation of the provisions of this Act under review,

F54[(b) ascertain whether An Garda Síochána, the Permanent Defence Force, the Revenue Commissioners and the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission are complying with its provisions, and]

(c) include, in the report to the Taoiseach under section 8(2) of the Act of 1993, such matters relating to this Act that the designated judge considers appropriate.

(2) For the purpose of carrying out the duties assigned under this section, the designated judge—

(a) has the power to investigate any case in which a F55[disclosure requirement] is made, and

(b) may access and inspect any official documents or records relating to the F56[requirement].

(3) Any person who was concerned in, or has information relevant to, the preparation or making of a F55[disclosure requirement] shall give the designated judge, on his or her request, such information relating to F56[the requirement] as is in the person’s possession.

F57[(4) The designated judge may, if he or she considers it desirable to do so, communicate with the Taoiseach or the Minister concerning F56[disclosure requirements] and with the Data Protection Commission in connection with its functions under the Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Acts 1988 to 2018.

(5) In this section, "Data Protection Regulation" means Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016³⁹ on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation).]