James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue around the amount of unpaid court-imposed fines in 2023. It is important to note that the principal penalty applied under the Road Traffic Act is a Garda fixed charge notice, FCN, combined with the imposition of penalty points. These measures provide an effective and appropriate enforcement response aimed at encouraging responsible driver behaviour without the need for court intervention or court-imposed fines in most instances. Since 2019, more than 550,000 fixed charge notices have been issued for non-intercept speeding offences, with a very a high level of public compliance. Approximately 80% of FCNs were paid on time without recourse to the courts. Under the provisions of the Courts Service Act 1998, management of the courts is the responsibility of the Courts Service, which is independent in exercising its functions including the provision of information on the courts system. However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have had enquiries made and the Courts Service has informed me that a total of 43,118 fines with a value of €15.2 million are currently due. I understand that 28,474 of these relate to road traffic offences, with a total value of just over €8 million. I am advised that this is the overall figure for fines due. It is not possible to provide the number of these that are unpaid. The Deputy may be aware that the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014 was introduced to provide for alternative orders to imprisonment in the event that a court-imposed fine is not paid. The Act was designed to help address the high level of short-term prison sentences for the non-payment of court-imposed fines. In 2015, prior to commencement of the Act, there were 9,883 committals to prison for non-payment of fines. By 2022, this had fallen to only 205, a reduction of 98%. I am satisfied that in terms of reducing committal rates, the 2014 Act has achieved that objective. That said, the fine collection system provided for in the 2014 Act has proven cumbersome to operate and a review has been undertaken by a high level group chaired by the Department. Its recommendations are now being considered by the Department with a view to bringing forward proposals to streamline the system.

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