Jim McDaid (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)

Senator Browne said the section was too vague. It specifically indicates the type of offences which will prohibit people from holding a licence. The Senator's amendment is vague in that it provides as follows:

a person being the applicant for or the holder of a licence is–

(a) convicted on indictment of any offence, or

(b) convicted summarily of an offence and sentenced to a term of imprisonment,

the person is disqualified for holding a licence, and, accordingly, where the person is the holder of a licence, the licence stands revoked.

We have specifically stated the areas which prohibit a person from being granted a licence.

There are people who have committed offences against agricultural regulations or waste management legislation, such as a farmer convicted of inadvertently polluting a stream, who, were we to accept Senator Browne's amendment, would be banned from holding a licence. I do not imagine that is what the Senator wants. We all want to ensure that holders of taxi licences are fit to deal with the public. I imagine that is the motivation behind the Senator's amendment. That is not to say that a person convicted of an offence under waste management legislation, such as polluting a stream, is not fit to deal with people.

The importance of this section has been the subject of a significant number of comments by many contributors to the debates on the Bill. It provides the basis for granting to users of small public service vehicles a significantly increased level of assurance as to their safety by the removal from the operation of such vehicles of those who have been convicted of one of a range of serious offences. It represents a balance between the needs of the public and the rights of the operators and drivers to pursue their chosen livelihood. It is by necessity a fine balance and one arrived at after detailed consideration. Central to that balance is the fact that the section specifically refers to a range of offences, the commission of which would cast immediate doubt on the fitness of the convicted person to be engaged in the service.

To widen the scope of the section to encompass all offences, which the Senator is attempting to do, would represent an undue prohibition on such persons – I gave examples of farmers or others inadvertently committing other offences not listed in the section. I consider that the section as proposed addresses the correct range of offences. We cannot include all offences because some do not relate to people being suitable to deal with members of the public.