Vol. 535 No. 1
411 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will liaise with the Department of Education and Science for the provision of driving tutoring lessons and the provision of driving tests for transition year students as part of the school curriculum; and if his Department has any plans to provide such changes under its own remit. [11897/01]
415 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will consider the provision of special driving training classes and driving tests for transition year students as part of their curriculum; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11931/01]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 411 and 415 together.
The Government strategy for road safety 1998-2002 acknowledged the importance of driver training and testing, with the qualification that these could not be expected to yield road safety benefits on the scale of measures directly targeted at speeding, alcohol and seat belt wearing which have been prioritised by the strategy. Driver training is available at present from private motoring schools, many of whose instructors are registered with the voluntary driver instructor register, which has been financially supported by my Department.
Education and information is recognised in the safety strategy as being vital to forming good road safety habits in younger people who are the adult road users of the future. The National Safety Council is developing special material and programmes for the post primary sector that will focus both on safe road use by teenagers and the future responsibilities of young people as drivers. The council also regularly targets young drivers in its public media campaigns.
My Department was represented on a task group set up by the NCCA in autumn 2000, at the request of the Minister for Education and Science, to look at this whole area of driver education. I understand that the task group has submitted its report to the Minister for Education and that its recommendations are being examined. My Department is also supporting an initiative taken by a school in Crumlin which arranges driving lessons for students in the course of their leaving certificate course, by arranging block bookings of driving tests for students who have taken driving lessons in the course of their leaving certificate course. All such students would be over 17 years of age and have provisional licences. Students in transition year are not normally more than sixteen years of age and could not be facilitated in the same way.
