Results 3,921-3,940 of 26,006 for speaker:Kieran O'Donnell

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: I will just add to that. The 31, 605 vehicles on the priority list all have appointment dates. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: They do have an appointment date. Have the 355,985 vehicle owners applied for an appointment?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: Just to clarify, the 31,605 figure is for those that have appointments. The 355,985 figure is the total number of cars, outside of the 31,605, that have received a 90-day notice to make an appointment. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: That is 387,590 in total. The key question is how many of the 355,985 do not have an appointment.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: You should have that figure for us today. It is unacceptable that you do not have that figure because we are hearing from the public that they are petrified about being stopped by a garda. There are genuine people who have applied for the test but will not get it before their NCT certificate goes out of date. They are worried about how members of the Garda and their insurance company will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: That is how people would get the slot. I know of a person based in Dublin whose certificate was due to expire on 12 October. The person went onto the booking system on Monday and the earliest available slot was on 4 January 2023 in Clifden or Westport, which is miles away-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: I am reaffirming the Senator's point. The next appointment in Deansgrange was on 18 April, which is six months away. The longest wait time was for Drogheda, with the next available slot on 2 May, almost seven months away. It is very difficult to comprehend what is happening. People are trying to book tests and while they might be a bit late in doing so, they should not have to wait three...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: We are talking about the law-abiding people who are fearful about how their insurance company and An Garda Síochána will treat them. It must be said that the insurance companies and the Garda are being very pragmatic at the moment but people are genuinely worried because technically they are breaking the law, through no fault of their own, because they cannot get a test.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: I would have thought it is more of a case of not enforcing the law. Technically, people are breaking the law it is just that gardaí are not enforcing it. The insurance companies are also taking a pragmatic view. Ultimately, this is happening because people cannot get tests on time. If I have a four-year-old car and I want to trade it in, no dealer will touch it unless it has a valid...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: Can I add to that, Mr. Walsh, please, with Deputy Lowry’s indulgence? This is coming up for us all of the time with bringing in drivers, in particular, from the South African area. We have had a look at the process and there are two elements to this. Companies must apply for a visa through the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment for the driver. Our understanding is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: As Deputy Lowry has stated, we are saying that when people arrive in Ireland there is an inordinate amount of time before drivers, male or female, can physically start to work for the employer.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: When was this?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: Roughly?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: That is not the question Deputy Lowry is asking. He is asking if a garda who is on the side of the road has access to the RSA's database that shows the owner of the car in question has applied for an NCT test.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: But will they know if a person has applied for a test?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: If An Garda Síochána can go in and look on a database and see that an NCT certificate has been issued, someone must have inputted the data onto the system. Is that Applus or the RSA?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: Deputy Lowry's point is a very straightforward and common-sense one. If, through no fault of its own, the RSA has major delays, in the modern world it should be possible to input on the system that an application has been lodged with the NCT for a test. Has the RSA not even considered that given the current climate?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: Currently, what system does the NCT certificate sit on? We assume the bulk of the 387,590 people currently have applications for a test, without being called. Surely, it is possible for the RSA and the NCT to input that on a system so that it will come up on An Garda Síochána's system as well when at the roadside?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Engagement with Road Safety Authority (12 Oct 2022)

Kieran O'Donnell: Why not?