John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 9: To ask the Minister for Transport if he will introduce changes to the fixed charge penalty system as recommended to his Department by the Courts Service in its submission on the statement of strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9693/08]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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The suggestions for consideration that the Courts Service sets out in its submission to my Department are predicated on a fixed charge sum having the same legal status as a monetary fine imposed by a court following conviction of an offence. This is not the case. Therefore, on those grounds, most of the suggestions made are not legally feasible. It must be borne in mind that the fixed charge system applies to offences that come under the criminal law system. The vital distinction is that whereas a fine levied by a court following conviction is a monetary penalty, that is, a debt amount due and owed by the person concerned, a fixed charge is an amount that a person may opt to pay in lieu of being prosecuted in court. A person is not under a legal obligation to pay a fixed charge.

I appreciate that the Courts Service is seeking to reduce the number of fixed charge offences going into the court prosecution system where a fixed charge has not been paid within the statutory 56-day period. The suggestion that a fixed charge be automatically owed and that an onus should be placed on the recipient of a fixed charge notice to indicate that he or she wishes to go to court as opposed to having this the default position is to be examined, as is the feasibility of the suggestion that a driver licence number be recorded when a car is being taxed.

More generally, my Department has written to the Courts Service recently and all other stakeholder agencies and Departments involved in the road safety strategy to elicit any and all suggestions for possible inclusion in the Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill that I will be progressing in the latter half of this year. Suggestions received from agencies, including the Courts Service, such as the issues I have referred to, will be the subject of consultation between my officials and the other agencies concerned.

Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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I will permit Deputy O'Dowd to speak but we have very little time remaining.

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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In the first six months of last year 88,000 people did not pay their fine within 56 days. Each one of those cases proceeded through the District Court. Probably about 160,000 cases came before the District Courts in the past 12 months. This means that they cannot cope and the entire system is breaking down. Up to 500,000 notices could be issued per annum following the introduction of speed cameras. Unless the Minister changes the system, the courts system simply will not work. The most significant problem is caused by the cohorts who do not pay their fines and decide to go to court. Of these, about 125,000 do not have a driving licence and about 10,000 do not have insurance. About 3,000 or 4,000 are caught driving with a mobile phone in their hand. A significant cohort is are escaping. If one does not pay one's fine, a summons will not be served. In the order of 40,000 court summonses were not delivered in the first six months of last year. The process needs urgent and radical reform; otherwise, the court system will grind to a halt and those who deserve it most will get away with everything.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Is there scope for expanding the remit of the national vehicle driver file and using it as the rock on which misdemeanours will be listed and followed up? Has the Minister done any more work on the mutual recognition of penalty points with the authorities in Northern Ireland and other jurisdictions?

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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On the last question posed by Deputy Broughan, I am not sure if I reported to the House since I met my counterpart in the United Kingdom. We have since met at the North-South Ministerial Council. The matter was discussed at each of those meetings. A tripartite meeting with my counterpart in the United Kingdom, Mr. Jim Fitzpatrick, and Ms Arlene Foster will probably take place in early April to finalise the timescale.

In the context of a new road traffic Bill, the suggestions the Courts Service has made which have been reiterated by Deputy O'Dowd will be considered. There may be a difficulty posed by a person's constitutional right to go to court. We must look at this issue.

On the point made about the use of licence numbers, I am in favour of any system that will get us to a position where the maximum information can be obtained. The legislation should be in place in order that driving licence numbers, PPS numbers and so on can be used across systems for these purposes. Obviously, that is not within my direct remit but the issue needs to be discussed and finalised. It would help to streamline systems.