An Garda Síochána

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 March 2023

Tuesday, 28 March 2023

Questions (227)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

227. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Transport further to Parliamentary Question No. 281 of 21 March 2023, if he will confirm that information is also provided to An Garda Síochána by his Department by electronic transfer; if a driving licence or learner permit has been surrendered as a result of a court-ordered disqualification; if he will report on the improvements that have been made to the system that shares details of disqualifications with An Garda Síochána; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15464/23]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Transport

When a person is disqualified from driving, either by a court order or from the accumulation of penalty points, they are required to surrender their driving licence to the National Driver Licence Service (NDLS). On receipt of a surrendered licence, the NDLS records the date of surrender on the Department of Transport's National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF). The information on the NVDF is available to the Garda Síochána under appropriate data sharing procedures.

A driver who is disqualified may not drive for that period, whether or not they have surrendered their licence. Using the Garda mobility application, Gardaí can detect if a driver is driving while disqualified and this is not dependent on the licence having been surrendered.