Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this debate. I very much welcome this Bill and the changes it proposes to legislation. Despite the differences that exist in this House, one thing on which we all agree is that the safety of road users has to be a priority. I have no doubt that each and every one of us has been affected at some stage as a result of a road traffic accident. Since 1997 the trend has been towards lower numbers of deaths on the roads but I am worried that in recent years, we have seen the trend rise. This is worrying and we must took at it in greater detail. We must find out what is the cause of the rise in road deaths in recent years. This year alone the number of road deaths stands at 138 while the number of road deaths for the same period last year was 115. As a member of the Joint Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have consistently raised the issue of the poor state of the road networks.

I especially want to raise the issue of the state of the local roads and laneways. For the last two years, Louth County Council has had a policy of not repairing local roads. This is a mistake and I would urge Louth County Council to reconsider this policy. The poor state of the roads is a factor in least some road traffic accidents. There is no point in having a state-of-the-art car with all the safety features if the roads on which it travels are in a poor state. An immediate solution to this problem would be for the local county council to reactivate the community involvement scheme. I brought this to the Minister's attention at the Joint Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport meeting last week. In the past, the schemes have proven very successful in keeping local roads maintained and have received great support from local people. I call on the Minister to urge local councils to make these schemes available as soon as possible.

Coming from a Border area, this legislation is particularly relevant. In Dundalk and surrounding areas, a large percentage of the road users are actually drivers and cars from Northern Ireland. While I fully accept that the vast majority of these road users are law abiding and respect our rules of the road, there are, unfortunately, a small minority who do not have any respect for the rules of the road. This legislation will once and for all tackle the age old problem of Northern Ireland drivers who up to now did not have to abide by the rules of the road while driving south of the Border. The current situation is that a driver who is disqualified in the EU member state which issued their licence is then automatically barred from driving abroad due to the fact that they do not have a valid Iicence. However, if a driver from one EU member state is disqualified from driving in another member state, then the ban will only apply in the country that imposes the ban. For example, a driver from Northern Ireland who is disqualified from driving in the Republic of Ireland can still hold a valid licence for Northern Ireland.

Despite many difficulties, I am pleased that along with the UK authorities we have negotiated a new bilateral agreement which is outside of the EU convention and was signed in October 2015. The agreement will not be affected by the UK’s decision to leave the EU. It will take effect once this legislation is passed. We will then have a situation whereby Irish drivers who are disqualified in the UK will also be disqualified here and UK licence holders who are disqualified here will also be disqualified in the UK.

I would also like to say a few words in regard to the new proposed special speed limit of 20 km/h. I am in support of it and also support the fact that the local authorities will be given the powers to implement it. I would also like to put on record the efforts of the Jake’s Legacy campaign which has been instrumental in advocating reduced speed limits in housing estates.

I welcome this comprehensive legislation. There is no doubt that the drug-driving provisions will tackle the ever increasing problem of people driving while under the influence of drugs. The new option of the 20 km/h speed limit will make our built-up areas and housing estates a safer place. I look forward to seeing the reduced speed limit applied to many areas in Dundalk, including Lennonstown Manor. The residents there have been very active in their quest to reduce speed limits and I have no doubt they will be delighted with this new legislation.

I am also delighted to see that drivers from both Northern Ireland and the Republic will finally be bound by the law of both jurisdictions and that it will now be enforceable. This has been a particular problem in the border areas, including Dundalk. Finally, I welcome the fact that we will now start to address the question of written-off vehicles and introduce a proper system of recording when a vehicle is written off.

See this speech in context