Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I did not set them up and we must deal with the existing systems. It frustrates me when I table Dáil questions and the Ceann Comhairle's office has to tell us the Minister does not have responsibility in these matters. A process must be found to deal with our concerns and issues. There have recently been issues on road development, road safety and driver testing on which it was legitimate for all of us to ask questions and try to achieve what we want because people are talking to us about it. It seems a long time since these systems were established and while some of them work, there are gaps. I share the same frustrations on trying to get information as other Members on both sides of the House. There are Ministers who try to help us and get the information to us, but sometimes it is difficult. We could talk about the HSE all day, but I do not want the Leas-Cheann Comhairle to throw me out. It comes into this discussion, but I will let it pass.

The Minister said the NVDF is a database of national strategic importance. It contains details of all 2.4 million registered vehicles and 2.5 million licensed drivers in Ireland. It is the product of a major computerisation project which was completed by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in 2002. The system enables all vehicle and driving licence transaction processing to be updated in real time. It is critical to the management of the national motor tax and driving licence services including the optimisation of these services to the motoring public.

I come from a different Dublin in a different generation when there was hardly a car on the street. I remember the horses on the street and the trams before the tracks were pulled up. Now everybody has a car. When I first moved to Tallaght hardly anybody had a car, and I did not have one. Now every house has three or four cars and that adds to the challenge. Anybody who tries to drive in the morning or evening knows the difficulties this entails.

The data in the NVDF plays a key role in vehicle and driver regulation and supporting the critical road safety agenda. In this context the Government deemed it appropriate that the system and its support staff transfer from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to the Department of Transport. This Bill is necessary to give effect to the transfer of functions relating to non-national roads and the NVDF to the Department of Transport. The Government will make a transfer order to coincide with the enactment of the Bill. I am glad this Bill is being supported on the Government benches, and if I have listened carefully to most of the speeches from the Opposition there is a measure of support there and that is fair.

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