I have already put on record my deep concern regarding the serious failures of An Garda Síohána in relation to the fixed charge notice offence/road traffic summons issues that came to light last year.
The road traffic enforcement function performed by An Garda Síochána is one of its key functions and, together with my officials, I will continue to maintain ongoing, close contact with An Garda Síochána and the Policing Authority in relation to the matters referred to in the Deputy's question, and I welcome the continuing oversight of the Policing Authority in this respect.
In the meantime, the Government’s priority, and that of An Garda Síochána, is the continuation of effective road safety enforcement. 2017 witnessed the lowest number of road traffic fatalities in Ireland (159) since statistics were first recorded almost 60 years ago. This Government has put in place significant Garda resources, both human and financial, but, as the Policing Authority has emphasised, cultural change within An Garda Síochána is of critical importance.
The Road Safety Authority published its mid-term evaluation of the Road Safety Strategy 2013-2020 earlier this month, and the consensus of all stakeholders involved in the evaluation was that the focus must be on the main killer behaviours on Irish roads. 22 new actions were drawn up, including 12 key actions for priority implementation, which include the extension of the Fixed Charge Notice (FCN) System and an increase in penalties associated with a number of road traffic offences, such as speeding, mobile phone use and seatbelt use. As such, the operation of an effective FCN system continues to be a central tenet of road traffic enforcement and, by extension, national road safety.
I have requested a report from An Garda Síochána in relation to the statistical information sought by the Deputy and I will be in contact directly with the Deputy immediately on receipt of a Garda report.
