Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

Yes, I have seen it happen a few times on the roads recently. Gardaí are confiscating cars for different reasons. Obviously, non-nationals were involved in some instances. As Deputy Kenny stated, quite a number of issues arise in respect of the plates being used and so on.

A number of the issues raised, apart from insurance and the clampdown in that regard, are EU related. However, the situation in respect of foreign drivers in this country is no different from that which pertains in respect of an Irish person driving on the Continent with an Irish registration plate. I am told that efforts are being made at EU level to co-ordinate the rules regarding those issues. The Deputy mentioned one of them, namely, testing within a particular period, and it would be sensible for this to happen. An attempt is being made at EU level to harmonise regulations of penalty points in respect of people who drive cars in other jurisdictions. We will have to await the outcome in this regard.

People who drive in this country have the same rights and obligations as Irish citizens who drive on mainland Europe. The point the Deputy is making is whether they should be subject to local laws, rules and so on. There would have to be a European understanding in that regard. I do not believe we could arbitrarily apply a regulation in that regard in this country. The longer a person is allowed to retain a car in a jurisdiction without it undergoing mandatory testing and so on, the longer the system remains open to abuse. One does not have to be an expert to note the high proportion of cheap cars being driven in this jurisdiction. Many people are not worried whether these vehicles are confiscated or not, something of which the Garda is very conscious.

In the meantime, Ireland has complied and continues to comply with the European Transport Safety Council report on EU safety. The Minister for Transport, Deputy Dempsey, will shortly publish a road safety strategy through which we will continue to improve and enhance fairly tough regulations. Some people may not be pleased with many of these regulations. While all of them cannot be implemented within a fixed period, many of them will be introduced in the next few years. We will continue to enhance our road safety. The strategy, which is due to be published in approximately two weeks, is a comprehensive report which outlines the many actions that will be carried out, not overnight, but during a fixed period. In the meantime, we will continue to support the dedicated transport corps which comprises more than 800 gardaí who stop 30,000 drivers a month in respect of issues such as alcohol consumption, performance and so on. These checks are improving our statistics on road safety and we must continue to enforce them. That is the Government's intention.

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