Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
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19. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport further to Parliamentary Question No. 1732 of 17 September 2014, in view of the allegations made in relation to unsafe conditions at the national car test Ballymun centre, affecting workers' lives and health, if he will establish an independent investigation into the allegations. [36638/14]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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As I explained to the Deputy in my response to the earlier Parliamentary Question No. 1732, the Road Safety Authority has statutory responsibility of the operation, oversight, development, quality assurance and delivery of vehicle testing arrangements.  The Authority, in turn, has put in place stringent quality assurance and audit processes to oversee all aspects of the delivery of the NCT function by Applus+.  

I understand that in correspondence between the Deputy and the RSA, the latter has addressed the issues raised by the Deputy in relation to the Northpoint test centre in Ballymun.

Issues concerning health and safety at work are a matter for the relevant employer and for the HSA as the national statutory body with responsibility for ensuring that employees are protected from work-related injury and ill-health. Neither I nor my Department have any statutory function in this regard and could I suggest that if the Deputy continues to have concerns in relation to the Ballymun test centre, or any NCT centre, she should make contact with the appropriate national authority in this area, namely the HSA.

Indeed I understand from the Road Safety Authority that the HSA inspected the NCT Northpoint test centre in Ballymun as recently as Friday last, 26 September, and no issues or actions were raised by that authority.