Emer Currie (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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285. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of drivers disqualified in court, by month, to date in 2025; the number who failed to surrender their licence/learner permit to the Road Safety Authority as required by law; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44977/25]

Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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As Minister of State for International & Road Transport, Logistics, Rail & Ports, I wish to advise that the tables below detail the number of court disqualifications notified to the Department in 2025, up to 31 July, and of licences that were surrendered.

A notification of disqualification is issued by the Courts Service for drivers who receive a court disqualification. Driving disqualification court order information is sent electronically from the Courts Service to my Department. This information is then endorsed on driver records on the Department's National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF). The notification includes the requirement to surrender the driving licence or learner permit to the Road Safety Authority (RSA) within 14 days of commencement of the disqualification.

It is an offence to drive while disqualified and once a driver is disqualified, their licence is no longer valid, whether it has been surrendered or not. In a significant share of disqualification cases, the driver in question has not had a licence at all.

Failing to surrender a licence following disqualification is also an offence and is a matter for the Garda Síochána. An Garda Síochána have access to data on the NVDF and can therefore detect and prosecute drivers who continue to drive while disqualified, whether or not their licence has been surrendered.

It is important to note that, while the non-surrender of licences is of concern, the more important issue from a road safety perspective is that the disqualification from driving is observed. The individuals in question are fully aware of the Court's decision and the disqualification is in effect regardless of whether their licence is surrendered.

The key concern to me as Minister and to the RSA is whether a driver who has been disqualified continues to drive on our roads. To this end, information is provided to the Gardai Síochána by the Department of Transport, via electronic transfer, to indicate if a driver is disqualified or if a driving licence or learner permit has been surrendered as a result of a penalty point disqualification. The Department and the RSA also facilitate the matching and sharing of data on court-ordered disqualifications.

The information requested is set out below.

Disqualifications