Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1289. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will hold discussions with the motor industry and promote policies to ensure that all new cars and commercial vehicles have advanced driver assistance systems as standard features of all new vehicles being imported here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15745/18]

Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1291. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will promote policies to ensure that key advanced driver assistance systems (details supplied) become standard features of all vehicles being driven on roads here to move towards an Irish vision zero road deaths and injuries target; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15747/18]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1289 and 1291 together.

My Department is fully committed to promoting safety on Irish roads and is constantly working to improve standards.  I would be glad to facilitate discussions with representatives from the motor industry in order to advance that aim.

A number of legislative policies governing vehicle safety standards are already in effect.  The current Regulations (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning type-approval for the general safety of motor vehicles, their trailers and systems, components and separate technical units, underpins the construction requirements for new vehicles.  This Regulation contains provisions relating to the mandatory fitment of certain advanced safety features such as Electronic Stability Control Systems (ESC), Advanced Braking Systems (ABS) and Lane Departure Warning Systems (LDW) and has applied since 1 November 2011. 

Further to this, the European New Car Assessment Programme (EURO NCAP) is a vehicle safety rating system used to rate the performance of a vehicle over a range of tests aiming to replicate crash scenarios.  The EURO NCAP provides an assessment of the safety performance of some of the most popular cars sold in Europe which consumers can use to compare the safety performance of similarly sized vehicles.