Ms Donna Price:

We thank the Chairman and members of the committee for the opportunity to address them here today.

The Irish Road Victims Association, IRVA, is a non-governmental organisation, NGO, run entirely by volunteers that works nationwide. We provide practical and emotional support to road victims and their bereaved families free of charge, seven days a week. We advocate for the bereaved and injured victims, and work with all road safety stakeholders in our combined efforts to reduce road dangers. As members of the Victims Rights Alliance, we also work to ensure the transposition and full implementation of the EU directive on victims of crime into Irish law. IRVA is a member of the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety and of the European Federation of Road Traffic Victims, both of which have UN consultative status and through them, we are also members of the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration.

We are regularly consulted by the World Health Organization, WHO, and we were asked to speak as a panellist at its Post Crash event, which focused on the post crash response and on justice for victims at the second high level conference on road safety in Brasilia in 2015. Following on that, the WHO has now asked us to contribute to an e-learning module on legislative aspects of road safety and in particular to one module dedicated to the experiences and needs of those affected by road traffic injury, relative to legislation.

I founded IRVA with members of the Defence Forces who had lost colleagues on the roads, following the death of my son Darren who was killed in 2006 while travelling to college in Athlone, the same year that the Road Safety Authority, RSA, was launched. It was a particularly horrific year on our roads, not just for my family but for the 365 families who had a loved one killed on the roads that year, not to mention the many more who were seriously injured, estimated at five times that number. During that time, together with others, we were invited to address the transport committee when mandatory testing for alcohol following fatal and serious injury was included for the first time in our legislation. Quite unbelievably, and to the horror of all of our families, we found that in nine out of ten fatal crashes, the surviving driver was not tested for alcohol or drugs. Our families have had to live with the consequence of this failure, a grave injustice.

Since 2006, we have almost halved the deaths on our roads, and we commend the RSA, the Garda, the Health and Safety Authority, HSA, and all stakeholders on their efforts in helping to bring this about. However, no life is dispensable and even one avoidable death is one too many, knowing as we do, the utter devastation caused to our families and communities. Our lives have been destroyed forever. There is still so much that we can and must do to save lives.

It is 11 years this very month since my son Darren was killed and 11 years also in September, since the RSA was established. These were 11 years during which we have had too many more totally avoidable deaths and serious injuries, despite all of our efforts. We are still fighting for more resources for the Garda Síochána, for improved Garda investigations and for required changes in legislation. We are still fighting for criminal charges, prosecutions and sentencing that reflect the seriousness of the crime committed of taking a life or affecting the quality of a life. These are real crimes and not just misdemeanours and we feel there should be a vehicular manslaughter charge included in legislation to reflect how seriously society sees these deaths, a charge of careless driving in such circumstances being clearly inappropriate.

The Garda investigation forms the cornerstone for justice. In the absence of a thorough investigation, in which there are mandatory checks of all of the known contributory causes of these fatal collisions, we will not see prosecutions which reflect the taking of our loved ones' lives. We firmly believe that criminal court cases highlighted in the media in recent years are sending out the wrong message and that they are certainly not acting as a deterrent. Too few of these deaths are resulting in prosecutions for the crime of taking a life or affecting the quality of a life. Fewer than 15% result in a charge of "dangerous driving causing death", the only homicide offence. Why? We believe there is too much victim blaming and that there is still no routine and mandatory checking of all of the known contributory causes of these collisions. This is vital work which must be done in all cases to determine what crimes have been committed before a file is forwarded to the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, with the Garda recommendation regarding prosecution. This must change now both in order that justice is seen to be served and to act as a deterrent. Our road safety work and data collection must also be truly evidence-based. Road deaths should be investigated and prosecuted like other homicides, with hearings taken out of the lower courts, and heard instead in the higher courts before a jury. Road crime is real crime and road victims are entitled to the same information, support and protection that is afforded by our criminal justice system to other victims of crime. Just because a death is caused by a car it is no less of a death. These deaths and serious injuries are not accidents and terminology is vitally important. Our legislation and road safety efforts should reflect this.

We are aware that there has been some discussion in recent weeks about the Minister's proposal to change the penalty for some drink-drivers. We support these changes wholeheartedly. The evidence is there that if the changes deter people from drink-driving, lives will be saved Some Members of the Oireachtas may have concerns about the impact of that on rural areas but there is no proposal from the Minister to change the law as to when an offence has been committed. I am sure no Member of the House wants to be seen to condone anyone in whatever pub in whatever part of Ireland drinking and driving and endangering others. The same law applies to all of us.

I know the Minister's new proposal will come before this committee in the weeks ahead. I hope that the committee will look at the proposal with an open mind and listen to the evidence to back it up instead of listening to the lobbying of vested interests. This is something that the citizens of this State want. I had a brief discussion with Deputy Troy at our vigil outside Leinster House. I was encouraged to hear that his party has not yet taken a definitive decision to propose amendments to the legislation, despite media coverage to the contrary. We appeal to the esteemed members of the committee to listen to the voices of the victims who have lived this nightmare and who have, unfortunately, experienced the injustice of our legal system which has failed to meet our needs. Members have in their hands the power to enact legislation that will save lives. We cannot excuse or condone drunk or otherwise impaired driving at any level, so I ask members to please think very carefully of the message they will be sending out.

I am joined by Leo Liegheo whose daughter Marsia was killed by a hit and run driver, and by Gillian Treacy whose son Ciarán was killed by a drunk driver. Gillian herself sustained horrific injuries in that crash. We are joined by retired garda John Wilson. Together we are happy to answer any questions the committee may have.