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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 29 Sep 1999

Vol. 508 No. 1

Adjournment Debate. - Taxi Licences.

(Mayo): I thank the Ceann Comhairle for choosing this item for the Adjournment Debate and I wish to share my time with my colleague, Deputy Olivia Mitchell.

(Mayo): The awarding of a public service vehicle licence to the man convicted in 1995 of raping and having unlawful carnal knowledge of a 14 year old girl was grossly irresponsible on the part of the State. How somebody who was in jail following one of the most high profile and controversial court cases to come before the courts in recent times, and which eventually led to the young victim having an abortion in Britain, was deemed by the State to be suitable to hold a taxi licence is incomprehensible and indefensible. The blame lies fairly and squarely on the State.

Cabinteely Garda station, which received the initial application for the licence, should not have been operating on forms which were three years out of date. However, even using the old forms, there is no excuse for awarding the licence to somebody convicted of such a serious crime. The Criminal Records Office, to which the application was sent from Cabinteely, had the man's name, date of birth and previous criminal record. Although he had changed address, the CRO warned Cabinteely that a man with the same name had a criminal record for the unlawful carnal knowledge of a 14 year old girl. At this stage, there should have been an immediate and thorough check done to ensure that the applicant was not the convicted person. No such check was done. The form was passed to the local Garda superintendent who passed it on to the Carriage Office at Dublin Castle and the licence duly issued. The negligence does not end there.

According to the National Taxi Drivers Union, one of their members recognised the hackney driver last November and reported the matter to the Carriage Office. It assumed that the driver would be called in and his licence revoked. This was not done. According to the Garda, one of its members also observed the man driving a hackney and informed his superiors as far back as July 1998. It is established that human error on the part of a garda was to blame and it was decided not to revoke the licence because a psychologist's report from Arbour Hill, where the man served his sentence, allegedly described him as not possessing violent tendencies. Surely anybody who knows anything about criminal behaviour knows well that of all the areas of human misconduct, the likelihood of reoffending is highest among sex offenders. This case involves somebody who raped a 14 year old, first, being issued with a licence and, second, being allowed to retain his licence even though the matter of his criminal record had come to the notice of the authorities on at least two occasions.

It is no excuse to defend the decision to allow him to retain his licence by maintaining that the man could challenge the decision in court. A court would not stand over a decision to award such a licence in the full knowledge of the man's previous conviction, it would not permit someone to retain a licence where the service he was providing involved picking up girls and young children after darkness and in secluded situations, nor would it elevate the constitutional right of the convicted person to earn a living over and above the constitutional right of a young girl to travel in a taxi in safety.

Will the Minister spell out his version of exactly how this man got this licence? Will the Minister say why the authorities did not revoke this man's licence when it came to their attention, and if an examination has been carried out or an investigation or inquiry into the identity of existing PSV licence holders established, to ensure that such licence holders have not been convicted of sexual or other violent crimes in the past? The Minister must reassure the public tonight that no such situation will ever be repeated.

I will highlight a related matter – that there are close to 4,000 hackney cabs operating in Dublin with no external identification. We are all aware, and parents are particularly aware of the dangers for women and young girls, who are often alone at the darkest and loneliest times of night when they enter even a clearly marked, fully licensed taxi driven by someone with a full and valid PSV licence issued by the Garda. How much greater are those dangers for the same girls when they enter unmarked cars in the same circumstances – unmarked cars which may or may not be driven by one of the 4,000 valid hackney drivers? The Minister may not be aware that young girls are being picked up every night of the week in this city by unscrupulous people in cars purporting to be hackneys. It is particularly so in the busy, dark winter nights in the run-up to Christmas when demand is high.

The regulations which allow external identification, which in itself is only a minimal safeguard, have been agreed but have been unsigned on the desk of the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Deputy Dempsey, for some months. They must be signed before someone is hurt. I do not know if the Minister is aware that the word on the street is that the Minister, Deputy Dempsey, does not wish to upset the taxi industry by allowing external identification for valid hackneys. I assure the Minister that the upset of the taxi industry, awesome as it can be, will be nothing compared to the upset of the public if a young girl is raped or murdered in one of these unmarked cars. I plead with the Minister to speak with the Minister, Deputy Dempsey, about this matter. As we come into winter, it is time to have the regulations signed and hackney cabs made clearly identifiable in this city.

I cannot speak for the Minister, Deputy Dempsey, but anyone who knows him, even fleetingly, will accept that the last thing of which one could accuse him is being afraid of any lobby group. I am as concerned as any Member that the procedures used by the Garda authorities for the licensing of public service vehicles are adequate to ensure that PSV licences are granted only to persons who are fit and proper to hold such licences. The legal position is that the legislation concerning small public service vehicles – taxis and hackneys – is set out in the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations, 1963, (S.I. 191 of 1963) as amended. The primary legislation is the Road Traffic Act, 1961, (Part VII) as amended.

While the Minister for the Environment and Local Government is responsible for all road traffic legislation, including small public service vehicle legislation, under current arrangements the Garda Commissioner has responsibility for the following: enforcement of the regulations, including inspections of vehicles; licensing of drivers of public service vehicles; enforcement of the relevant road traffic legislation governing the operation of hackneys and taxis, such as correct fares, assaults and hackneys plying for hire; and approval of ranks. Prosecutions under the above regulations are taken by the Garda Carriage Office, Dublin Castle.

I understand local authorities are responsible for the licensing of hackneys and taxis, creating or altering taxi meter areas, and determining the number of taxis in a taxi meter area. The issue of the processing of public service vehicle applications with regard to the suitability of applicants is a matter for the Garda authorities, and responsibility for ensuring that persons are fit to be granted a licence rests with the authorising officer in accordance with the provisions of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations, 1970, (S.I. 200 of 1970). In these circumstances, the Deputies will appreciate that I had no prior knowledge of this case until it came into the public domain.

I have been advised by the Garda authorities that a working group has been set up to review existing procedures for the processing of public service vehicle applications. I expect this review will address the issues raised regarding the procedures for ensuring that PSV licences are only granted to appropriate persons. I have been assured that any change in existing procedures considered necessary will be put in place as soon as possible.

In terms of the background to the case referred to by the Deputy, I am informed by the Garda authorities that the individual convicted in the X case applied for a PSV licence at his local Garda station. A check was made regarding the applicant's character and a conviction recorded against him was not matched. A licence was subsequently granted to him on 22 September 1997. I understand from the Garda authorities that this matter first came to their attention in August 1998. The case was reviewed and the licensee was interviewed on several occasions. A medical report on the licensee was considered along with legal advice on the matter. Having reviewed all the information available, the Garda authorities decided not to revoke the licence. On 21 September 1999, on receipt of further information, the Garda authorities decided to revoke his licence.

As the House is aware, the Government's An Action Programme for the Millennium contains a commitment to introduce a register of sex offenders. In February last, I sought and obtained Cabinet approval for the preparation of heads of a Sex Offenders Bill to provide for the establishment of such a register, the principal focus of which is to be on offences against children. On 1 June, following consideration by the Cabinet of the heads, I received approval for the drafting of the Bill. In addition to the register, the Bill will deal with post-release supervision of sex offenders by the Probation and Welfare Service and separate legal representation in certain circumstances for complainants of rape and serious sexual assault. It will also include provision for a new civil court order against a sex offender whose behaviour in the community gives the Garda reasonable cause for concern that the order is necessary to protect the public from serious harm. In addition, it will create an offence for a convicted child sex offender to seek or accept employment involving unsupervised access to children without informing the employer of the conviction.

These measures arise, in the main, from the discussion paper on the law on sexual offences which I published in May of last year and are in line with the responses received to that paper. Preparation of this legislation is being given a high priority within my Department and I expect to be in a position to publish the Bill during the current Dáil session. I trust the new legislation, when enacted, together with any revised procedures established following the Garda authorities' review of the matter, will assist in ensuring that licences are issued only in appropriate circumstances in all cases.

The Dáil adjourned at 9.10 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Thursday, 30 September 1999.

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