Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 112: To ask the Minister for Transport the length of time the issue of mutual recognition of penalty points system in Ireland and the UK has been under consideration by the British Irish Council; if a resolution is expected soon; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21234/05]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Where a driver with a foreign licence is detected committing a penalty-point offence in the Republic of Ireland at present, it is not possible to record his or her penalty points as no entry exists in the national driver file relating to that driver. The Road Traffic Act 2002 provides that where such drivers pay a fixed charge a record is opened in the national driver file recording details of the offence and the number of penalty points applicable are held in abeyance. Should the driver apply for an Irish driving licence at a later date the points then become live and will be endorsed on the licence record for a three year period.

The North-South work programme, which was agreed by the North-South Ministerial Council, included a commitment to examine the mutual recognition of penalty points between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. However, in addition to the fact that separate penalty point systems operate in the two jurisdictions on this island, the system that operates in Northern Ireland differs from that applying in Great Britain. There is no mutual recognition between those two systems. Accordingly, where a person who holds a Northern Ireland licence commits a penalty-point offence in Great Britain, the points cannot be recorded on that licence. For that reason, it was agreed in 2003 that it would be more appropriate to pursue the question of mutual recognition of penalty points on the basis of the operation of the three systems and that it would also be more appropriate to deal with the issue under the auspices of the British Irish Council. As Northern Ireland has the lead role for transport matters in the council, the authorities in that jurisdiction are taking the lead in considering this issue.

The development of a system of mutual recognition of penalty points presents complex legal questions and may require the negotiation of a bilateral agreement between the two Governments and possibly the passage of primary legislation to support such an agreement. For that reason, my Department has sought the advice of the Attorney General's Office in relation to this issue.