Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Independent)
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28. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the actions he will take in conjunction with the Department for Justice and Equality to ensure that all persons disqualified from driving after having received the maximum number of penalty points or through orders of the courts will have their driving licences surrendered or seized by the appropriate authorities so as to ensure that full records are maintained of all disqualified drivers. [36633/14]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Under section 22 of the Road Traffic Act 2002, as amended, a person who appears in court in relation to an alleged offence under the Road Traffic Acts is required to produce their driving licence or learner permit and a copy of that licence or learner permit, in court.  Failure to do so is an offence.  The penalty is the general penalty under section 102 of the Road Traffic Act 1961, i.e. a fine of up to €1,000 for a first offence, a fine of up to €2,000 for a second or subsequent offence, and a fine of up to €2,000 and/or three months imprisonment for a third or subsequent offence within a period of one year.  Where a case results in the individual being required to surrender their licence, the licence can therefore be retained by the court at the end of the process. The implementation of the provisions is a matter for the Courts Service and my colleague the Minister for Justice and Equality.

In addition, under section 40 of the 1961 Act, a Garda may demand production of a driving licence and, under Section 60 of the Road Traffic Act 2010, may seize such licence where the member has reasonable grounds for believing that the individual has been disqualified.

Where a person reaches the penalty point threshold of 12 points, or 7 points or more for first time learner permit holders from 1 August 2014, a notification issues to the person informing them that they must surrender their driving licence to the National Driver Licensing Service (NDLS). In addition to this notification, a notice is issued to the licensing authority and An Garda Síochána informing them of each individual penalty point disqualification to ensure that they are aware of the disqualification as well as the driver.

It is a matter for the Road Safety Authority, as the licensing authority to ensure that those drivers who have been disqualified surrender their licence to the NDLS.  I will however ensure that this matter be considered in the context of the Penalty Points working group with a view to ensuring that the most effective arrangements are put in place to ensure that all licences are surrendered. I have also forwarded the Deputy's question to the RSA and have asked it to respond to the Deputy directly with regard to the actions it is taking to ensure that drivers who have been disqualified surrender their licences.  I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.