Shane McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)

In the past 12 or 15 months we have gone from the bottom of the list to near the top in terms of road safety and this has been achieved by the expenditure of a significant amount of money. Is the Minister happy that road safety measures implemented by local authorities are being complied with in a proper fashion? Is the Minister of the opinion that the Road Safety Authority should work in conjunction with the local authorities and with the road safety officer who must be appointed in every county by the end of September? Road accidents, road deaths, damage to cars and injuries to people cost a total of €1.3 billion in 2007. The money given to the Department of Transport by the Department of Finance was money very well spent in supporting road safety. However, it is not a success story. Both the Minister and I know we could do a lot better and be number one in Europe, if not in the world, if we continue to spend money on road safety and if we work together as a team. However, Deputies on all sides of the House are concerned because the quality of the country's roads is rapidly deteriorating. I ask the Minister to consider the possibility of the Road Safety Authority and the road safety officers, who must be appointed by every council by the end of the year, working with the county councils.

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