Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 150: To ask the Minister for Transport the progress to date on reaching a bilateral agreement with the UK authorities on mutual recognition of penalty points. [29077/05]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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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 the North. However, in addition to the fact that separate penalty points systems operate in the two jurisdictions on this island, the system that operates in Northern Ireland differs from that applying in Great Britain. For that reason, it was agreed, early 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 that it would be dealt with under the auspices of the British-Irish Council, BIC. As Northern Ireland has the lead role for transport matters in the BIC, 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 will require the negotiation of a bilateral agreement between the two Governments and probably the passage of primary legislation to support such an agreement. For that reason, my Department has sought and obtained the advice of the Office of the Attorney General regarding this issue. It will inform future consideration of the issue.