Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)

The reference to the Road Traffic Act 1994 is set out in full in section 12 of the Bill. The expression "the Act of 1994" is not used. Section 12 provides that the section be cited together with the Road Traffic Acts 1961 to 2006 as the Road Traffic Acts 1961 to 2007. Section 12 is drafted as a stand-alone section to be cited with the Road Traffic Acts. It is not necessary and I do not propose to insert an abbreviation of "Act of 1994", as proposed by the Deputy, in section 1 of the Bill.

On amendment No. 5, the Road Traffic Acts provide that a member of the Garda Síochána may require a person in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle to provide a preliminary breath specimen where the vehicle is involved in a road collision. Garda discretion relating to the use of the preliminary roadside test in such circumstances is necessary, having regard, as the Deputy outlined, to possible injury. I do not propose to alter that provision. Given that the power to require a person to provide a breath sample where a collision has taken place already exists and given the need to maintain Garda discretion in the matter I will ask Deputy Mitchell to withdraw that amendment.

I remind Deputies that the Road Traffic Acts also place an obligation on a person to provide a blood or urine sample in a hospital. That applies where an event occurs involving a vehicle which results in a person being injured, or a person claiming or appearing to have been injured, where the person is admitted to or attends a hospital and a member of the Garda Síochána is of the opinion that at the time of the event the person had consumed an intoxicant. An intoxicant includes alcohol and drugs or any combination of alcohol and drugs.

Amendment No. 19 proposes the Minister introduce mandatory testing for an intoxicant. In light of the Deputy's previous proposal relating to mandatory alcohol testing at accident sites, I presume the point of this amendment is to try to introduce a system for preliminary testing for substances such as drugs. The reason there is currently no legislative provision that would allow for preliminary testing for drugs is that no standard approved roadside test is available for drugs. There is, however, much research on the subject and research continues to be undertaken. The Medical Bureau of Road Safety is involved in, and keeps abreast of, that research and any developments in the area.

Should a garda form an opinion that drugs have been consumed, he or she can use the provisions of section 14 of the Road Traffic Act 1994 to require a person to accompany him or her to the Garda station for the purposes of carrying out a blood or urine test. As I stated previously, a member of the Garda Síochána can request a roadside breath sample to indicate the presence of alcohol from any driver involved in a collision. My difficulty with this proposal is that the detection of a driver under the influence of a drug must, until a robust method of preliminary testing for the presence of a drug is found, continue to be based on the determination of a garda, made on the basis of the incapacity of the driver to control the vehicle.

The Road Traffic Acts already place an obligation on a person to provide a blood or urine sample in hospital. As previously mentioned, it applies where an event occurs involving a vehicle which results in a person being injured, or claiming or appearing to have been injured, where the person is admitted to or attends a hospital and a member of the Garda Síochána is of the opinion that at the time of the event the person had consumed an intoxicant. Until such time as roadside testing methods are available the introduction of mandatory testing for substances other than alcohol is not feasible. For that reason I cannot accept the amendment.

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