Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 107: To ask the Minister for Transport his views on the calls from the Road Safety Authority to his Department to immediately introduce legislation to give powers to the Garda to seize disqualified drivers' licences; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3874/08]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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Driving while disqualified from doing so is deemed to be the same as driving without a licence. The Garda has powers under section 38 of the Road Traffic 1961 to deal with the offence of driving a mechanically propelled vehicle in a public place without holding a valid driving licence. A driver detected driving while disqualified can be summonsed to appear before the courts to answer that charge. Section 102 of the 1961 Act also provides for the penalties on summary conviction for an offence under section 38 of that Act. The maximum fine for first offence is €1,000; for a second or third offence-subsequent offence a fine not exceeding €2,000; and €2,000 for a third or subsequent offence, where committed within 12 consecutive months, and-or imprisonment to a term not exceeding three months at the discretion of the court.

Amendments to current legislation to permit seizure of licences is among a number of matters being considered by my officials in the context of the preparation of a road traffic Bill, which will be the subject of consultation with the Garda and my colleague, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister's intention to introduce legislation to deal with this issue, which was brought to his attention by the Road Safety Authority. The authority has complained that if a person with a fake driving licence is stopped by gardaí, they can request sight of the licence but cannot take it from him or her. If gardaí stop a motorist with a fake licence who is supposed to be off the road, they cannot take that licence either. Is it true that up to 1 November 2007, of the 121 drivers on 12 penalty points, who should be off the road, only 40 had handed in their licence to the local motor tax office, as required by law? This is a serious issue because these are dangerous, bad drivers.

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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Anybody who has accumulated 12 penalty points should not drive and he or she should surrender his or her licence. The legislation governing this is the direct responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform and it states clearly if the driver is brought before a court, the licence must be handed into the court and the judge should so order. I am not sure whether that has happened in all cases. The Deputy is correct that anybody who accumulates 12 penalty points is disqualified automatically and his or her licence should be handed up. Some motorists are of the view that if they do not hand up their licence, they can still drive but that is not true. It would be no harm if a message was sent to these people that they could be in serious trouble with their insurance company if they drive with a disqualified licence. However, the matter was raised during the discussion on the graduated driving licences and it will be dealt with more explicitly in the proposed legislation.

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Is it the case that gardaí are not equipped when they stop a motorist to investigate a number of issues and, for example, to establish whether he or she is disqualified? Computers in Garda cars should be linked in real time to a database containing such information or it should be accessible on the hand held devices gardaí use. One of the problems is I could be disqualified from driving but if I retain my licence, I could hire a car or purchase insurance legally and to all intents and purposes I could still be on the road. The key issue to be tackled is enabling the Garda to have access to a database containing this information so that members can establish whether a driver is disqualified or insured. The Motor Insurance Bureau estimates 100,000 people driving on our roads do not have car insurance. Is it the case that people use forged tax discs on their cars to pretend they have insurance? Will the legislation address these serious and important issues? If so, will the Garda be resourced accordingly?

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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The resourcing of the Garda is a matter for the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. I went to great pains on the day I announced the road safety strategy to point out the format of the strategy was stark and I felt strongly every agency should take its own responsibility in this regard. I take responsibility for the strategy and its implementation but everybody has bought into that and that is why agencies are identified for its implementation. I have enough on my hands trying to ensure a number of the targets are met. I will continue to ensure meetings are arranged between all the relevant agencies so that across the board matters are raised and targets are met. Each agency and Department is responsible for meeting its own targets. I am not being facetious but a number of the Deputy's questions could be directed to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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They have been addressed to the Minister in his statement of strategy regarding uninsured drivers. It is a matter for his Department of Transport and a submission in this regard has been published on its website.