Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 174: To ask the Minister for Transport if he will provide the number of drivers by the number of penalty points accumulated and by age. [24053/06]

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 175: To ask the Minister for Transport if he will provide the number of drivers by the number of penalty points accumulated and by licence status. [24054/06]

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 176: To ask the Minister for Transport if he will provide the number of drivers by the number of penalty points accumulated and by licence category. [24055/06]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 174 to 176, inclusive, together.

The information sought by the Deputy has been requested from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government which holds and administers the National Driver File and will be forwarded to the Deputy when it is available.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 177: To ask the Minister for Transport the nature of the records presently maintained in respect of penalty points for traffic offences; the arrangements made to facilitate An Garda Síochána, the Courts and motor insurance companies to access penalty points registered against names persons; and the arrangements in place to facilitate those who have attracted penalty points to enable them to ascertain the number of points recorded to date. [24108/06]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Penalty points are recorded on the relevant driving licence records contained in the National Driver File, which is held and administered by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. The record is established under section 60 of the Finance Act, 1993, which provides that an officer of a Minister of the Government, a licensing authority or the competent authority for licensing vehicles and drivers of vehicles in another Member State of the European Communities, an officer of the Revenue Commissioners, a member of the Garda Síochána or such other persons as may be prescribed shall have access to and may inspect and examine these records. Article 11 of the Road Traffic (Licensing of Drivers) Regulations, 1999 allows licensing authorities to supply such information as is requested in relation to a driving licence or provisional licence to a member of An Garda Síochána.

In relation to access by motor insurer's to penalty point data the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 58(1) and 60(3) of the Finance Act 1993 has made regulations which provide for the release of data, inter alia, to "Motor insurers approved by the Department of Transport for the purposes of supplying details of Driver Penalty Points imposed under the Road Traffic Act 2002 to facilitate insurance premium discounts to policy holders". Currently penalty point data is being made available to one motor insurer. A licence holder may make application to his or her licensing authority for a statement of the penalty points held on his or her licence record.