asked the Minister for the Environment if he has any proposal to alter the arrangements under which persons who reach the age of 70 have to pay not only a driving licence fee but also a fee to a doctor to provide a certificate, in order to alleviate possible hardship to persons on low income.
Written Answers. - Drivers' Fitness Certificates.
174.
It is a legal requirement that, in the case of a person over the age of 70, an application for a driving licence must be accompanied by a certificate of fitness. There is no charge for this certificate. The charge for the medical certificate, required for the purposes of the certificate of fitness, is entirely a matter between the applicant and the medical practitioner. In the case of medical card holders, there is no charge.
The cost of the driving licence is the appropriate excise duty, which is a matter for the Minister for Finance. There is no power to waive this cost in individual cases.