Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

354. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he has considered introducing a requirement for identification to be provided by the buyer of a car when ownership is being transferred to avoid a situation in which a buyer can provide a false address. [15530/21]

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Master Licence Record (MLR) programme was approved by the previous Minister of my Department, and the Minister for Justice. The programme seeks to assist in the endorsement of penalty points by matching vehicle and driver records on the Departments National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF), and over time, by establishing owner identity for all vehicle records. While the initial phase involved associating vehicle owner records with driver records by matching existing NVDF records, the next phase of the MLR programme primarily involves establishing vehicle owner identity when individuals engage with other Departmental systems, such as change of vehicle ownership and application for motor tax. 

 The Office of Parliamentary Counsel (OPC) has drafted primary legislation in the Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2020 to enable this, and my Department is further engaged with the Attorney General’s office on the mechanisms of how such identities are captured.  Once the draft legislation has been finalised, my Department will engage with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) for guidance on the subject.