Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

When I held the transport portfolio, which is about a year and a half ago now, the Minister's predecessor, Deputy Jack Chambers, told me this was all being solved, sorted out and going in the right direction. I remember him standing here and telling us that more driving test instructors were being recruited, more testing centres would be opened and everything was in hand and would be sorted out. The truth is that we have gone in the opposite direction since then. The figures bear this out. There are more than 72,000 people now on the waiting list, which is the longest it has ever been. Some have been on the waiting list for up to eight months. It simply is not good enough. Someone applying for a driving test today in Sligo would wait seven months to get one. Someone applying for one in Leitrim today would wait up to six months to get one. It is outrageous.

People who live in rural communities and areas simply cannot manage without their car. They need it to get to work. For young people starting out, the car is the only method they have of travelling because we do not have the public transport infrastructure that urban areas have. It needs to be recognised that the Government has dropped the ball in respect of this. To pass the buck to the RSA and say it has not done this or that or that everything has been done that can be done simply does not stand up. We need to recognise that we have an awful lot of work to do. People need their car to get to work or to hospital appointments and to get their children to school. The Government cuts transport in every other way. Every September, Deputies fight in this Chamber to get pupils on school buses. Many children living in rural areas cannot get a school bus. People need their car to bring their children to school. This particularly affects younger couples when one of them has to get a driving licence.

Recently, a doctor who returned from America contacted our office. He could not transfer his US licence and ended up for several months having to get a taxi to call into the hospital when he was working late nights and to travel to and from work. If he wanted to drive a car, he had to get somebody who was a qualified driver to travel with him. It is preposterous that people who return from the US cannot get their driving licences transferred over. This needs to be resolved. I know the Minister agrees with me on that but why has it not been resolved?

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