Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State said that in normal times, there is a ten-week waiting list for driver tests. The waiting list for a driver test in the Tallaght centre was 9,500 in November. That is nearly one tenth of all the people waiting for tests in the State. There is clearly a problem. There was an increase of over 4,000 in just four months, so it is safe to assume that the number waiting now could be 10,000 or 11,000. I do not have the figures, maybe the Minister of State has them to hand, but the waiting list in Tallaght is equivalent to the population of a good sized Irish town.

Delays can have serious implications for employment, holding onto employment or simply bringing children to school or doing the weekly shop. Restrictions on public transport due to Covid mean this is having an even greater impact on people's lives. What specific actions does the Minister of State propose to take to reduce the backlog? Has she consulted with instructors, testers and their unions to find a way to accelerate the numbers of tests that can be carried out safely in the coming months? Have overtime, additional staff and so on been considered? I am looking for answers because it is a huge challenge and is negatively impacting a huge number of people.

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