Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

There is significant pressure on the licensing authority to qualify drivers with L plates. Many of them are quite young, want to get their licences and need cars to have independence of movement, bring children to school and travel to and from their jobs. As politicians, we apply part of that pressure, but road safety has to come first. We must be more stringent as to who we allow to drive on our roads. One can be a prudent, careful and experienced driver, but one cannot legislate for the idiot who will come flying around the corner at 100 mph in a 30 mph zone. We cannot idiot-proof legislation and I hope that I will not be accused of Nazism, but there should be some form of driving intelligence test as part of the licensing procedure. Too many innocent people have been killed on our roads by people who were out of their minds with speed. I would like to see something done in that regard.

The Irish Rail leak did not do the Minister or his Department any service. It frightened the bejesus, if the Chair will pardon the expression, out of rural Ireland. A more temperate report has arisen from the Cabinet discussion, but the Minister or whoever is leaking such statements to the media should not be doing so. Perhaps the Minister will comment on this. People are trying to catch up afterwards-----