Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 September 2014
274. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 560 of 17 September 2014, if she will provide a further breakdown of the drivers disqualified from driving by orders of the courts with statistics on the number of these drivers who surrendered their licence to the court upon disqualification in each of those districts and in each of those years. [36478/14]
View answerI wish to inform the Deputy that, under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service which is independent in exercising its functions, which include the provision of information on the courts system.
As I indicated in my response to Parliamentary Question No. 455 on 24 June 2014 the arrangements in relation to driving licences changed in January 2013. Up to then, when a person was disqualified by a court, they had to send/hand their driving licence into the court office. The disqualification was physically marked on the licence which was then sent to the relevant motor tax office where it was held until the period of disqualification was completed or the licence was restored by the court.
From January 2013, the person was required to send the licence directly to the licensing authority. This coincided with the introduction of the new card type driving licences on which details of a disqualification could not physically be entered. The fines notice which now issues to the person who was fined and disqualified includes the following "Please forward your driving licence to the National Driver Licence Service, PO Box 858, Southside Delivery Office, Cork for the purpose of having the particulars of the conviction of disqualification of the District Court endorsed on your driver record".
Prior to 2013, there were no computerised records of any driving licences which were handed in so it is not possible to provide figures for 2012. The Courts Service has advised that figures should be available from the local motor tax offices for the period up to the creation of the National Driver Licence Service in late 2013. Figures since then should be available from the National Driver Licence Service.
