Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)

Perhaps I did not clarify the matter sufficiently. I am not concerned about a garda acting in a nefarious manner because one cannot legislate for such a circumstance. I am trying to remove the requirement on a member of the Garda Síochána to make a medical judgment. When an event takes place at a roadside a garda is left with the three options outlined by the Minister, namely, to call an ambulance in the event that someone requires hospitalisation, arrest the person if he or she believes the driver is faking illness or deal with the matter as prescribed by taking a breath test. The difficulty arises when a citizen decides to fake hyperventilation or another medical condition. In such circumstances, a garda must make a judgment as to whether to arrest the individual in question. If it transpires that the individual is not faking illness, what will be the consequences for the garda? This places a burden of responsibility on a garda.

As regards the option of calling an ambulance, it is open to anyone to refuse to be taken to hospital by ambulance. It is beyond the capacity of a garda or, for that matter, a doctor to dictate that a driver must be taken to hospital. As a doctor, the Minister will know more about this issue than I do. A garda may decide to allow a driver time to overcome the problem he or she is experiencing, resulting in a protracted period being spent on the roadside as the driver tries to stall or prevent a breath test being carried out. If the driver also refuses to go to hospital, the garda concerned is left in a difficult position. The only intervention available to him or her is to arrest the person concerned, which is a difficult decision to make when the person appears to be in an extremely distressed state. I expect this problem will give rise to stand-offs at roadsides because gardaí will be reluctant to arrest a person on the basis of the impact of such a course of action should it later transpire that the driver's behaviour was genuine.

If, on the other hand, drivers knew they must ultimately give a sample of blood or urine, the incentive to delay would be removed. The amendments are necessary for this reason, rather than as a means of addressing circumstances in which a garda acts in a nefarious manner, to use the Minister's term. I hope that clarifies my position.

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