Ivor Callely (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)

I am not going to respond to every individual point made, so I ask Senators to be mature and responsible about this debate and not cherrypick. People may decide to continue to return to a test centre to discover every problem their cars have, but there is a system in place. If no work involved, it is free and if there is work involved, a charge applies. The last report was published in 2001 but I have been in the Department for only three weeks. I understand reports were also published in 2002 and 2003 and I commit to the House that they will be published by the end of this month. If they can be published more quickly, they will.

Senator Ryan raised many issues and made particular reference to the age of vehicles. He queried whether three year old cars were unsafe. To my surprise, cars which are less than one year old may require remedial action. Cars with high mileage may require tyres, for example. I am not sure what Senator Ryan meant by his reference to three year old cars.

I thank Senator Wilson for his kind comments and constructive contribution. The car tax requirement initially in place was dropped due to the backlog which arose from an industrial action. We can apply restoration if desired. The level of tax compliance is approximately 94%, which is quite high, and we are not sure it is necessary to reintroduce the requirement. Should it prove necessary to do so, I will certainly take on board Senator Wilson's point.

Senators Norris and Ryan mentioned public service and commercial vehicle testing for which criteria exist. I am not sure that if we were to embark on a discussion of six month certification and the purchase of a second-hand vehicle, we would wish to excuse a person who bought an old car and failed to ascertain whether it had an NCT certificate. It is unlikely we would decide that someone else should be responsible for the neglect of the purchaser. Is it not part of the NCT process to ensure that one is satisfied the vehicle one buys meets with safety requirements? If I bought a car, I would like to know it had an NCT certificate. If a car should have acquired an NCT certificate 18 months previously, is it reasonable that the person who presents it at a centre should receive a test for a full two years? Should we not put structures in place to which everyone should adhere? If asked, the House would concur with this suggestion. There is a structure in place.

While compulsory roadworthiness tests exist for commercial vehicles, like Senator Norris I have noticed black diesel smoke coming from some. Now that I am in this Department, it is an issue I might be able to follow up on.

I thank Senator Dooley for his kind comments on my commitment and his constructive input. Senator Finucane raised the issue of number plates which deserves mention. The Senator referred to a money making racket, a phrase which can be used about anything. It is not a fair reflection of the reality. If there were a number of serious accidents where cameras had failed to capture a registration plate and the excuse given was that certain criteria had not been met, there would be a different debate in the House. A demand would be made as to why a requirement was not included in the national car test or stipulations made by the Garda. The Revenue Commissioners and the Garda are anxious to ensure that the criteria which apply in the national car test are in place. The requirement is in place to meet the standards set by both organisations.

Senator Paddy Burke referred to the failure rate. Senator O'Toole expressed disappointment with the Government amendment and said one out of every two cars fails the national car test, which is a very high rate. While the failure rate has settled at approximately 50%, one must consider those whose cars do not pass the test. Not everyone gets his or her car serviced before taking it to a test centre. Some people openly admit that they take cars to test centres to find out what is required for them to pass the test at which point the car is taken to be repaired before being retested. If one puts matters in perspective, it is fair to comment that car owners use the national car test as a diagnostic mechanism to the same extent as they use it to acquire a certificate.

People call for more test centres and greater competition and cite the example of the United Kingdom. According to figures which have been brought to my attention, while the test costs €48 in Ireland, it costs €62 in Britain, which has been the subject of approving comment. Some people cherrypick and call for the British system at the Irish price. Comparisons are available. In Germany the test costs €90, in Holland €100, in the Czech Republic €63 and in Spain it is €60.

The national car test is the result of an EU directive which provides for mandatory testing. The scope of the test and the items to be examined are set out in EU law. Ireland was one of the last member states to introduce compulsory car testing. In 1996, a range of options for the introduction of car testing was considered by the rainbow coalition Government including the direct provision of the service by the State and the introduction of a test similar to that in place for commercial vehicles which is carried out at a number of approved garages. The introduction of the latter system would have required the appointment by local authorities of private garages to carry out testing. The rainbow Government decided the test should be carried out by a single contractor operating as a dedicated car testing organisation. Public private partnership involving a single organisation was considered to offer the most efficient and cost-effective way to provide motorists with a car testing centre of the highest quality. That is a fair assessment in hindsight. The party sponsoring tonight's motion was in Government when the decision was made.

Following an internationally advertised public tender competition run in accordance with EU procurement procedures, National Car Testing Service Limited was awarded the contract to test cars on behalf of the State for a period of ten years from January 2000. Under the terms of the contract, the company is required to meet a range of specific performance standards in the areas of customer service, premises, test equipment, staff, test arrangements, facilities management, information technology and public information. These standards are designed to ensure test integrity and a high level of customer service. Senator Ryan commented kindly on customer service provision. The contract provides for the imposition of financial penalties on the company for failure to meet the specific performance standards and for the termination of the contract where the degree of non-performance is very serious. The question of penalties has not arisen to date as the performance of the company has been up to standard since testing commenced in January 2000. I am at a loss to understand the claim in the motion that there has been widespread concern about the car testing scheme since it was introduced. This is not so and flies in the face of the facts. The reality is that any of the independent surveys undertaken to assess customer satisfaction with the service show the ratings have been positive. They have consistently recorded results that have exceeded the performance levels required under the contract. From listening to radio chat shows and idle talk, whether at the street corner or in the pub, and I am aware of the comments made in the House, they all focus on individual incidents and-or issues.

The most recent NCT survey results show a customer satisfaction rating of 85%. I will publish those figures and place them in the Oireachtas Library as soon as possible. The idea that the number of test centres for a city or county should be such as to reflect the proportional strength of car ownership for that city or county does not stand up to scrutiny. I would be delighted to hear the debate should we have only one test centre in County Cork or wherever as people would complain they had to travel miles to a test centre.

We should look at the success of the 43 test centres, unless the mover of the motion wants to identify test centres in his constituency or in other regions he may wish to close, and deal with the scenario that would develop. From the point of view of convenience for the public and the commercial viability of the scheme what we have in place is adequate but it should be monitored and kept under review.

The one certainty from linking the number of test centres to the county spread of car ownership would be an increased cost base with test fees having to rise substantially to meet higher overheads required to run and manage the extended test centre network. It is clear the proposers of the motion, with their simplistic approach to the location of test centres, have little understanding of the car testing service from either the customer service, operation or commercial perspective as the statistics and the facts are clear.

Under the contract the NCTS is required to provide a network of test centres nationally, with each test centre being located within 30 miles of 90% of the car owners for whom it is the nearest centre. A test centre must be within or close to a large town and be served by a national road. In other words, the convenience to the customer is paramount. The company has met these requirements and operates 43 test centres. Test centres are generally purpose built facilities involving a range of test lane configurations. The test centres network comprises one test centre with nine test lanes, one with six, one with five, one with four, four with three, 14 with two and 21 with one. The test centres with the most test lanes serve the regions with the greatest demand. Given that the service is remunerated solely from the fees paid by customers, I am satisfied the network of test centres operated by the NCTS strikes a fair balance between customer convenience and the amount of the test fee.

The standard of testing in Dublin is comparable with the rest of the country. The Dublin test centres at Northpoint, Fonthill and Deansgrange with nine, six and five lanes, respectively, are the largest in the country, which is not surprising given it is the region with the highest number of cars registered in the State. These strategically located multi-lane test centres on the north side, south side and west side of the city are served by a modern road network which makes them easy to get to for car owners. There is no question that the service provided to Dublin motorists by the NCTS is anything less than what is required under the contract or is inferior to that available to car owners in other regions. There might have been some justification for the motion were it the case that car owners were experiencing delays in getting appointments for tests or retests. However, that claim, to which a number of speakers referred, is unfair. There is no unnecessary bureaucracy or lengthy delays for tests.

The National Car Testing Service is one of the least bureaucratic organisations one could encounter. It has been designed and developed with a commitment to high-quality customer service at its core, and one speaker acknowledged that fact. The facilities provided for the booking of tests are extensive and user friendly, covering the making of bookings in person, by post, telephone, fax, e-mail or on the Internet. The flexible opening hours operated by test centres make it possible for customers to arrange a test outside normal working hours and days.

On the day of the test all one must do is turn up with the vehicle on time for the appointment with the vehicle registration certificate and the test fee. In less than an hour after arrival, the customer is on his or her way again having had his or her car tested, having been briefed by the inspector on the outcome of the test and given the test report and an NCT certificate if the vehicle passed the test.

The procedures for handling complaints and appeals by customers dissatisfied with the outcome of a test or with some aspect of the service, are straightforward with a minimum of form filling. The existence of procedures for processing complaints and appeals is widely promoted by the company. They are mentioned in the communication sent by the company to customers and are outlined in detail in a notice displayed prominently in every test centre. In addition, NCT inspectors also inform customers of their right to process grievances under this machinery when advising them of the outcome of a test.

The company is contracted to meet rigorous performance standards for test appointments. They must ensure that the average waiting time for test appointments at any test centre is not greater than three weeks, subject to a maximum waiting time of four weeks for any individual booking. Besides leaving itself open to sanctions for failure to meet the service performance standards, the company is obliged to conduct tests free of charge where it cannot offer a test within four weeks of the booking. Last month the national average waiting time for a test was 4.1 days, in Dublin it was 2.5 days. For retests the national average waiting time was 2.6 days while in Dublin it was 1.8 days. These figures speak for themselves and clearly demonstrate——