Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak in support of this motion. We were all young and we all tried to have a go on the first engine we saw. Everything is fine until something goes wrong.

There is a wild streak in every youngster. Young people need opportunity as well. The one thing we have not done in this country is provide a safe environment where youngsters who want to use these vehicles can do so responsibly. We do not seem to want to do that. This activity is a torment in a lot of cities and areas.

Unfortunately, what is a great bit of craic sometimes ends up in someone losing a limb or a life, which is regrettable. We have to start regulating them. It is as simple as that. We have to make sure we put a person's life or limbs ahead of everything and make sure that this activity takes place in a safe environment. The message that needs to go out is that when doing one thing, a person needs to be doing something else in parallel. We need to give them the facility to express and enjoy themselves but in an environment operated by people who ensure the proper precautions are taken and, above all else, in an environment that is safe. This activity is a problem in many large cities. In the country, we do not see much of it. A person might see a quad bike quicker than he or she would see a scrambler. In the cities or the large towns, this activity gathers a crowd. There is no point in saying otherwise. It is great craic going up hills until something goes wrong.

There is one thing we could do in regard to quad bikes. I recall that years ago when we had a problem with very old tractors turning over and, unfortunately, people were being killed, a safety bar was put around them. Similar to the safety bar that was developed for the tractors which years ago had no cabs. We should look to that in regard to quad bikes. Unfortunately, the statistics show that a lot of people get caught when a quad bike tumbles over. I am not suggesting a safety bar is the be-all and end-all and that it would resolve everything but it could help. We need to make sure quad bikes have indicators for road use. To be honest, I think the cost of road tax on a quad bike is scandalous, especially for the farming community.

I will not labour and talk all night. I support the motion. We need to do it. In terms of recreation and sport and youngsters, they have had little to do over the past eight or nine months. The media sometimes likes to show them on television doing this or that wrong, or to show them outside some place in Dublin, Limerick or Galway and so on. In general, they can take a bow for the effort they have made in this country over the past seven or eight months. For people in our age group it is not as tough as it is for young, energetic people who want to go out and break free. We should be giving them the option to enjoy themselves safely and putting in place the facilities to enable them to do that.

I have spoken many times about Mondello Park. Last Sunday night week I spent time with a person aged 74 whose licence had expired. What have we become as a society that a person of 74 years of age who is well able to drive but whose licence has expired had to retake a theory test? Could we not have a bit of cop-on and bring them into the likes of Mondello Park, put up the signs and see whether they are fit to drive or not. This is what we are doing. As a society we tend to apply the hammer. We do not seem to have a sweet at all to try to bring people with us. We should look at that.

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