Deputy Charlie McConalogue:

I thank Deputy Mac Lochlainn for tabling the amendment. It relates to an appeals officer confirming that points should be assigned where he or she considers that the alleged serious infringement did occur and was a serious infringement. The serious infringement referred to is already defined in the Bill for masters. The legal position is that the amendment confuses EU law and Irish law, as well as civil law and criminal law, and the difference between serious and non-minor offences in Irish law.

The two standards referred to are entirely different and the amendment serves only to confuse the issue. Accordingly, this proposal was not accepted in the context of SI 318 of 2020 as regards the licence holders points system and I do not propose to accept it in the context of the Bill here either.