Ms Donna Price:

Many measures must be taken. We need to see more enforcement on the roads. The Garda must be properly resourced for this to happen. We were happy to hear from the assistant commissioner that the traffic corps levels are going to be increased by 10%, that 800 new gardaí will be introduced and that they will take part in traffic enforcement for ten weeks once they qualify. This is welcome news.

As I said in my opening statement, another measure would be to send out the right message that these are criminal offences, that they are crimes and not just misdemeanours. Terminology is important and we cannot continue to refer to them as accidents. They are not accidents because they are totally avoidable and preventable. We would prefer that the terms crashes, collisions or road crimes were used. We want to see an end to careless driving charges, especially in cases such as those seen recently in the media - and I am sure the members have heard of them - where repeat offenders with many previous convictions have killed people on the roads and they are getting away with charges of careless driving. Clearly this is inappropriate. Let us call them what they are. It is vehicular manslaughter and the sentences in legislation should reflect the seriousness of the crime committed, which is the taking of a life and affecting the quality of a life. More severe sentences are required, not because we are looking for vengeance or restitution but simply as a deterrent and for people to realise that if they are going to drink and drive, they are committing a crime and they are endangering our families on the roads. Quite simply, we cannot condone this behaviour.

My opening statement also suggested that when the worst happens and a person is killed or injured, then we must ensure there is a prosecution in most cases. We are not seeing that. For instance, the homicide offence, which is the only one under the legislation, is for dangerous driving causing death. We performed a quick analysis for the four year period 2009 to 2012 to find there were 99 such cases, yet in those same four years there were 799 road deaths. What happened to the other 700 cases and why do we not read about those cases in the media? They were not all as a result of victims' error on the road. We are seeing many prosecutions for minor road traffic offences such as no insurance, no tax, bald tyres or perhaps exceeding the speed limit, but no mention of the fact that a death has occurred as a result of that offence. We need to see more cases for vehicular manslaughter before the courts, not just the lesser and minor offences.

For that to happen we must have thorough Garda investigations. I know the gardaí carry out the investigation but they may be led down a certain route to the exclusion of all others. We advocate for a garda investigation that will thoroughly and routinely check all the known causative factors of these crashes before the file is sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions with the Garda recommendation regarding a prosecution. It would be a box-ticking exercise with somebody overlooking these files to ensure the tachograph chart, for instance, has been checked for the working hours for commercial drivers, that the mobile phone records have been checked, or that the tests for blood alcohol and drugs levels are checked. These things should be done routinely. Unfortunately, we found that until it was mandatory under legislation to test for alcohol, it had not been done with the surviving driver in 90% of cases. We ask that these checks are part of the legislation.

An Garda Síochána implements the law to the word. If it is not in the legislation that these checks must be done and shall be done, then the likelihood is that they will not be done in all cases. The result of that is our families having to live with the consequences. Without the Garda evidence that a crime has been committed, our families are left with no prosecution and we cannot prove, for example, that the death of our loved one was as a result of a driver texting on a phone. We cannot prove it unless that check is carried out and the evidence is submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions. It is vital. The Garda investigation forms the cornerstone for justice and this is why we want those things included in legislation.

We also want the legislation to be consolidated. As we know, the Road Traffic Acts go back to the 1960s and they are a maze. One cannot navigate a way through that legislation without legal expertise. The Road Traffic Acts are the most challenged of legislation so it is imperative that the law is modernised and updated. It must be clear on what crime has been committed and what will be the penalty or punishment. These are a few of the changes we think need to be made. I hope it answers Deputy Fitzpatrick's question.