Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

I ask the Cathaoirleach to forgive me for being parochial this morning if I raise a matter of great concern to people in south and west Dublin. A hole in the road yesterday evening caused the entire south and west of the city to be caught in a traffic gridlock for about four or five hours. While I acknowledge that emergency works must be carried out, the idea that one hole in a road in south Dublin can cause such chaos to commuters and their families is a matter of public concern. It also highlights the fragility of our transport system in this city. There is no public transport system worth talking about and motorists have to use the road. Will the Government bring forward promised legislation on the Dublin transport authority and, more importantly, ensure motorists are given adequate warning of these emergency issues as they arise, in particular with reference to motorways?

My understanding is that works on the upgrade are not taking place on a 24-seven basis. It is crazy that in the case of such a major piece of infrastructure, no work takes place on Saturdays and Sundays or in the evenings, when there is less traffic. If we are serious in our attitude to public infrastructure, a system must be devised to ensure road projects such as this are built on a 24-seven basis until the work is completed. This is an important issue upon which we should reflect.

I ask the Leader to ask the Minister for Transport for information on a very serious case which arose yesterday in Dungarvan District Court. A number of fines were struck out on the basis that the gardaí did not have the original copy of the offence notice to produce in court. Will amending legislation be introduced to deal with this matter? Will the Government appeal this decision to a higher court? What is the current position? The penalty points system forms the basis for trying to improve driver behaviour and performance. This is an example of botched legislation by the Minister for Transport who once again has been shown to be unable to bring effective legislation through both Houses to introduce the types of penalties that would change driver behaviour. The Minister has put amending legislation through this House twice already. Perhaps it is a case of third time unlucky.