I propose to take Questions Nos. 480 and 507 together.
Recommendation 28 of the Report on the Cost of Motor Insurance concerns the establishment of a fully functioning motor insurance database, known as the Motor Third Party Liability (MTPL) insurance database, to identify uninsured driving. Phase 1, relating to privately owned motor vehicles, has commenced testing and will provide insured and uninsured vehicle lists to An Garda Síochána based on vehicle licence plate number and insurer name. This includes providing a list of uninsured vehicles that can be loaded into the An Garda Síochána Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) System.
Phase 2 includes the capturing of driver numbers and has an expected date for its completion of Quarter 3 2020, with at that stage a target of 100% of driver numbers to be made available for the MTPL insurance database for privately owned motor vehicles, which makes up in the region of 92% of insured vehicles.
Section 78A of the Road Traffic Act 1961, as amended, requires all motor insurance companies to provide details of motor insurance policies to An Garda Síochána, to the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland, and to my Department and the MTPL database is the mechanism for doing this. An amendment to Section 78A of the Road Traffic Act 1961 to replace the reference to driver licence number with a reference to driver number is being submitted at report stage of the Road Traffic (Amendment) Act 2017, which is currently under way.
