Jim O'Keeffe
Question:100 Mr. J. O’Keeffe asked the Minister for Transport the way he will deal with the problem of non-compliance with mandatory EU rest times for HGV drivers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6584/07]
View answerWednesday, 21 February 2007
Questions (44, 45, 46, 47)
Róisín Shortall
Question:143 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Transport the evaluation carried out by his Department or on his Department’s behalf on the effectiveness of and level of compliance with the working hours restrictions for drivers of buses and heavy goods vehicles; and his policy in relation to facilitating and encouraging drivers to meet the requirements of this law. [6560/07]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 100 and 143 together.
Responsibility for the enforcement of the law relating to drivers' hours and rest periods are matters for the Road Safety Authority and the Garda Síochána. There is a duty on operators to comply with the law relating to drivers hours and rest periods. Failure to comply with the law may result in the driver or operator concerned being prosecuted in the Courts.
Ciarán Cuffe
Question:101 Mr. Cuffe asked the Minister for Transport the progress he has made in the European Commission with regard to overcoming the legislative loophole that prevents An Garda Síochána from attaching penalty points to foreign licences. [6637/07]
View answerUnder the Road Safety Authority Act 2006 (Conferral of Functions) Order 2006 (S.I. No. 477 of 2006) the Road Safety Authority has responsibility for ensuring that penalty points are endorsed on a licence record. Data in relation to penalty points is held on the National Driver File, which is administered by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.
All drivers are subject to road traffic law and it is a matter for An Garda Síochána to enforce the law. As foreign licence holders have no Irish driving licence penalty points are recorded against that person on a separate record in the National Driver File.
The Road Safety Unit of the European Commission's Directorate General for Energy and Transport recently launched a public consultation on the issue of cross-border enforcement in the field of road safety.
Eamon Gilmore
Question:102 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Transport his plans to ensure that non-resident drivers and in some cases non-national drivers do not escape punishment for road traffic offences. [6569/07]
View answerI am conscious that enforcing penalties for road traffic offences on non-resident and non national drivers raises many legal, organisational and procedural issues which make it very difficult for any one State to enforce such penalties. For that reason, my Department is pursuing this question at the European, British/Irish and North/South levels where mutual recognition and cross border enforcement possibilities are being pursued.