Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 September 2017
467. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans for North-South harmonisation in relation to penalty points in the context of Brexit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40284/17]
View answerThere is no cross-Border mechanism at present for the mutual recognition of penalty points between Ireland and Northern Ireland or any successful example of or framework for mutual recognition of penalty points between other jurisdictions in Europe.
A considerable amount of work has been done by my Department, involving my officials, the Department of Infrastructure in Northern Ireland, an Garda Síochána, the PSNI, the Department of Justice and Equality, the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland, the Courts Service both here and in Northern Ireland, and the Road Safety Authority.
That work identified a number of major issues which would need to be resolved before a system for the mutual recognition of penalty points could go ahead between Ireland and Northern Ireland, including the standardisation of penalty points awarded for various road traffic offences, resolving issues regarding summons service, and the need to ensure equality of treatment for drivers in both jurisdictions. This work would require primary legislation in both jurisdictions, and is currently undergoing legal advice for the best way to overcome the obstacles.
As the mutual recognition of penalty points, when implemented, would be by way of a bi-lateral agreement between the relevant authorities in Ireland and Northern Ireland (similar to the recently introduced bilateral Agreement between Ireland and the UK regarding mutual recognition of driving disqualifications), so there will be no impact from Brexit.
