Seanad debates

Thursday, 9 December 2004

Road Traffic Bill 2004: Second Stage.

 

3:00 pm

Photo of David NorrisDavid Norris (Independent)

I agree with much of what Senator Quinn and others said about changing behaviour. There has been a dramatic drop in penalty points pursuit, but when accident numbers increase this is described as a blip. Senator Quinn said it is more serious and that people do not take penalty points seriously. I do not agree. It is because nobody has the slightest respect for the speed limits. Why should they? They are daft, incoherent, inconsistent and do not deserve respect.

I can give examples from the Stillorgan Road, Ballyfermot, dual-carriageways and motorways where speed limits change from 70 mph to 60 mph to 50 mph to 30 mph arbitrarily wherever and where the little policeman stands under the bridge with the gun. I do not suggest he or the Garda is making money, but they are making convictions which is important from the point of view of promotion and advancement. They are making money not for themselves but for the county councils that have instituted these unfair and unjustifiable alterations in the speed limit.

I approve the direction this Bill is taking because the Minister of State is trying to get national coherence and consistency. Well done on that. However, to be honest, the need for this Bill is because nobody in his or her right mind would have any respect for the speed limits as they exist. Currently there are legal ways around the issue of speed limits and this undermines the penalty point system.

The motorist or customer also has entitlements. The Minister should introduce a system where there is a mandatory requirement where it is intended to prosecute for notice of such intent to be served within 60 days of the offence. It is unfair to send out such notices six months after an offence. That is wrong, bad practice and further undermines and erodes respect. Ultimately, we will only get a decrease in deaths and dangerous driving if we win the respect of people when imposing penalties. I agree with the penalty system and believe it will work and concur with Senator Quinn and others that an all-Ireland system is necessary.

I now wish as a grammarian to take issue with the Minister of State with regard to the plague of prepositions creeping into the English language. His speech states: "This essentially equals to 50 mph". It does not. It "equals 50 mph" or "is equal to 50 mph". This is as bad as another example from his speech which I would like to squash, namely, "comprises of". Things "are comprised of" or "comprise". Let us drive these prepositions back into their caves where they belong. I hope they will be deleted from the Minister of State's speech in future.

To return to the 70 mph or 120 km/h speed limit, what I like about this is that it will be standard. Before Cyprus joined the European Union that was the limit there. Not all cars are marked in kilometres as well as miles. Is there something we can do about this? Is there some kind of flexible Perspex that could be placed over speedometers?

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