Derek McDowell (Labour)

Senator Morrissey in his closing remarks made interesting comments about immigrants and drivers on foreign licences who are probably driving foreign cars. It is an issue with which we will have to come to grips. The Bill provides for the recognition of foreign licences, which is a start, but we must reach a position — this is being worked on and may have happened — on the recognition of foreign disqualifications, and we must move from there to recognise the penalty points systems that exist in other countries.

Having studied reports of recent accidents, another issue arises, which I accept is not easily addressed but which we need to address. This refers to the increasing number of immigrants driving left-hand drive cars, which are not suitable for our roads. It is fine that people coming here on holidays can bring their cars. We do the same when we go to the Continent and nobody seeks to prohibit that. However, if tens of thousands of people are driving left-hand drive cars which have difficulty overtaking, which is when many accidents happen, we must deal with this issue. We must regulate this situation so that such cars cannot be kept in the country for more than three months and so their owners have to drive a right-hand drive car. I appreciate it is not something we can deal with unilaterally but it is a problem.

It is clear from a study of the reports of recent accidents that overtaking by drivers using left-hand drive cars, who cannot have had sight of the road ahead, has been a serious issue and has caused a number of fatalities.