Vol. 534 No. 5
60 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the steps being taken to deal with deficiencies in the collection of fines and the failure to pursue summonses issued for motoring offences; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10989/01]
I presume the Deputy is referring to the recent value-for-money study carried out by the Comptroller and Auditor General. At the outset, I should state that my Department welcomes the study which will be of valuable assistance to it and all the other agencies involved in the collection of fines, including the Courts Service and, of course, the Garda Síochána in improving the system.
The report found that the collections of fines was a very complex process which involved interaction and interdependence between many separate units in a range of agencies under different managements. As the Deputy may be aware chapter six of the report entitled "The Department's View" sets out my Department's views on how the system can move forward and mentions specific projects which are already under way to bring this about.
Although my Department has no direct role in the collection of fines the two agencies mainly responsible i.e. the Garda Síochána and the Courts Service come under the aegis of my Department. A high level group comprising representatives of the Department, the Garda Síochána and the Courts Service is being put in place to address the issues highlighted in the C & AG's report.
