Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 109 and 166 together.

The Road Safety Strategy for 2007-2012, which was launched in October 2007, identifies the need to legislate for and introduce a reduction in the legal blood alcohol content, BAC, level for drivers but it does not specify what that level should be. The Government has accepted the Road Safety Authority's recommendation that the BAC level should be reduced. The precise level to which the BAC will be lowered will follow consideration by me of the advice of the RSA. I expect to receive that advice in the near future.

A number of issues will inform the recommendations of the RSA, including known driver behaviour, past offending rates, analysis of data held by the medical bureau of road safety, enforcement practicalities and best international practice. As the current blood alcohol level is set out in the Road Traffic Act 1994, changing that level will require an amendment to primary legislation and I will bring a road traffic Bill to Government as quickly as possible.

Any amended level will also require the recalibration and subsequent recertification of the technology used for testing blood alcohol levels, such as evidential breath testing machines in Garda stations and roadside breathalysers, and this will take some time. With this in mind I am not in a position at this stage to say exactly when a revised blood alcohol level will be fully operational but I will endeavour to improve on the 2009 second quarter target contained in the road safety strategy.

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