The first amendment is in the name of the Minister and arises out of committee proceedings. Amendments Nos. 1 to 5, inclusive, are related and will be discussed together.
Road Traffic Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages
I move amendment No. 1:
In page 9, between lines 29 and 30, to insert the following:
“(b) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2B):
“(2C) Where a member of the Garda Síochána, under subsection (2A), requires a person to provide a specimen of oral fluid from his or her mouth, the member shall require the person to remain at a place (including a vehicle) at or in the vicinity of the public place concerned (for a period that does not exceed 30 minutes after the provision of the specimen) until the apparatus referred to in subsection (2A) indicates the presence or absence of drugs in the specimen.”,”.
These amendments are being taken together. As a group, they are in response to a recent court case that made findings of concern with regard to intoxicant testing at the roadside. Gardaí have the power to conduct two kinds of tests for intoxicants at the roadside. These are breath tests for alcohol and oral fluid tests for drugs. The powers to conduct these tests are set out in sections 9 and 10 of the Road Traffic Act 2010. Section 10 deals specifically with roadside checkpoints, that is, pre-planned checkpoints where gardaí can stop and check any motorists passing through. Section 9 deals with all other circumstances where gardai may conduct these tests.
Where a garda makes a requirement under section 9 or 10 for a person to supply a specimen for testing, it is an offence for a person to refuse or fail to provide the specimen. Amendments to section 22 of the 2010 Act made in 2023 allow a person to offer a defence of a special and substantial reason for refusal or failure to comply with such requirements under sections 9 and 10.
Last November, in a court case known as DPP v. O’Flaherty, the High Court ruled that there was no implicit Garda power to hold someone at the scene of a roadside test once he or she had provided a specimen. The effect of the court ruling is that a person can leave the scene of the test before the gardaí have a test result. Deputies will know that a roadside breath test gives a more or less instant result. On the other hand, the test devices in use today are like tests we all got used to during the Covid-19 pandemic. The specimen is put in the device, a control bar appears to show there is a valid or adequate specimen and then lines will develop if there are drugs present. With the kits currently in use, it takes approximately two minutes for the control line to appear and a total of eight minutes for the full test to be completed. Therefore, we face a situation where a person could leave the scene and be some distance away before gardaí have a test result that could be positive for drugs. I think we would all accept that is not an acceptable legal position. When we think of the issues related to testing, we also have to bear in mind operational issues. Whether at a checkpoint or at the scene of a collision, a garda may have to attend to other things before he or she can deal with the person from whom they want to take a specimen. There may be issues with the device or difficulties getting a specimen. For example, it may not be easy to get a specific specimen from a person, and, in the case of a drug testing device, it may emerge after two minutes that there is no control bar and so a valid specimen has not yet been provided.
For these various reasons, we have decided to amend the legislation to provide an explicit power for the gardaí to require a person who is the subject of a roadside drug test to remain at the scene until a test result is achieved. We are not doing the same for the breath test given the near instant result in that case. We have set a maximum amount of time for holding a person at the scene. After consultation with the Garda about possible operational issues at the scene of a test and the possibility to conduct further tests if the original attempt to collect a specimen was not successful, we have determined that the maximum amount of time we should allow for holding a person at the scene for testing purposes is 30 minutes. This does not, of course, mean that gardaí could simply decide to hold a person for 30 minutes. Once they have got the test result, the gardaí will no longer be able to detain the person under these provisions. Of course, they might then arrest the person on intoxicated driving charges if a positive test result is returned. That is different matter, however. I should add that the Director of Public Prosecutions is appealing against the High Court's decision in the O'Flaherty case. We could wait for the appeal before acting, but on taking legal advice, I am satisfied that we should act now, without prejudice to the appeal, to put in explicit at powers for the Garda to hold someone until a test result is achieved.
I believe we can all agree it would be absurd to have a situation where a person driving on drugs could give a specimen to a garda and then drive away while the garda waited for the test result to develop. In order to address this issue, we are proposing amendments to both sections 9 and 10 of the Act to give the Garda the necessary power to require people to remain at the scene while gardaí conduct oral fluid test for drugs under those sections.
As I said, the maximum time for holding anyone will be 30 minutes. If the tests are concluded within that time, however, people cannot then be held further unless, of course, they are arrested then for intoxicated driving. As a consequence of introducing this new requirement to remain at the scene while a test is completed, we are also proposing to amend section 22 of the 2010 Act. This will allow for a defence of a special and substantial reason for refusing or failing to comply with the new requirement to remain at the scene. There could obviously be justifiable reasons, such as medical, for example, where it might not be possible for a person remain at the scene. This group of amendments includes a number of consequential amendments to update cross-references in the legislative text.
I have one question. Does this apply to random drug stops? That is one query. I extend sympathies and condolences to people whose lives have changed due to loss of life on Irish roads.
Sinn Féin will not be standing in the way of the Minister of State's Bill, but we do feel there are some glaring inadequacies in it. The Minister of State must surely accept that the Bill does nothing to address the enforcement of road safety work being undertaken by the Garda and the Road Safety Authority, RSA. The Government in its various iterations has overseen the absolute decimation of An Garda Síochána. Garda strength has dropped significantly. The Government has failed to rectify the recruitment and retention crisis within An Garda Síochána. This has had a horrendous impact on the ability of gardaí to carry out their work in enforcing road safety measures. They are overworked and the roads policing units face the prospect of losing more gardaí. My colleague and our spokesperson on transport, Deputy Martin Kenny, tried to address this difficulty on Committee Stage by tabling an amendment to ensure there would be a minimum number of gardaí within the units, but this was deemed to be out of order by the Minister of State. Deputy Kenny also focused on an increase in penalty points for those found under the influence of alcohol or drugs and the Government stood in the way of this. Deputy Kenny also submitted two amendments on the changes to speed reviews to ensure that what we know as accident black spots or high-collision locations would be reviewed, but this was opposed by the Government.
To be clear, we support measures to save the precious lives lost on our roads but we do not support cuts to road safety and the maintenance budget such as the €150 million cut which the Government made in budget 2024. The fact that the Department sought a plan to tackle road safety last year and then denied a funding request by the RSA to cover a broad road safety campaign is notable.
We continue to have serious reservations about the blanket approach being taken in the Bill. The blanket approach to speed limits will not work without adequate enforcement. This means real resources for the road traffic units and adequate funding and resourcing of the RSA which was denied the funding request. As every expert will tell us, serious and fatal collisions do not occur in a vacuum. There are multiple factors at play, not just speed which is the only factor being dealt with. It cannot be one or the other. With this Bill, the Government has yet again introduced legislation as a reaction instead of offering a multifactorial approach.
Having said that, in the absence of increased funding for the RSA and the appropriate resourcing of the roads policing unit, we will be offering cautious support. However, I want to ensure that those watching the debate are aware that Sinn Féin councillors at local level stand ready to work in conjunction with local communities and road safety campaigners to ensure appropriate speed limits are put in place in their localities. This may mean a decrease in some areas or limits remaining unchanged in others. Our councillors and elected representatives stand ready to work with communities that know their local roads best, rather than the blanket approach that this legislation presents.
I will ask the Minister of State a number of very serious questions. He is the Minister of State at the Department of Transport and there is a new regulation after being sent out whereby young drivers driving most vehicles will have to have an artic licence to cover them while driving. Does he realise the implications of this for young people who are trying to get going? What he is saying is that they can drive when they are transporting farm produce but they cannot operate without having an artic licence if they are working on a building site or do some other kind of work for a public body in another type of public scenario. Does he really understand what he is doing? Who dictated this law? Who made the change to the category W licence to require such drivers to have an artic licence? Does the Minister of State know that people cannot access this licence until they are 21 years of age, whereas they are normally able to drive a tractor when they are 16? Where is the data supporting the view that anything untoward was going on with these vehicles. Most of them can do a maximum speed of 40 km/h, which is not even 30 miles per hour. What is going on? Who is dictating these laws or where are they coming from? Was it the Irish Government? It does not seem to be an EU-wide requirement. We need to know first of all where this regulation came from.
I will ask a very important question. To have an artic licence, you had to be driving a vehicle with a fifth wheel and that type of a scenario was only to be found in an articulated truck. Then you could have a rigid lorry with a trailer behind it. You could have a load on the lorry and a load on the trailer pulled behind it but when it was not connected to the part of the towing vehicle by a fifth wheel, you could drive it with an ordinary rigid licence. Who is advising the Department? This is not thought-out properly at all. To be fair to the farmers, the one thing that helped to keep a young fella at home with them was if he could get a bit of work with a tractor and trailer locally with a builder or someone else for a few hours or a few days. This helped to sustain the young fella at home. They were also able to stay with the farmer in the first instance but now they will not be able to stay at home. This is going to affect local contractors on the other side who were maybe building a few houses, or maybe one house, and the young fella was able to go down the road and draw away the few loads of stuff-----
I am giving the Deputy great latitude but this is not related to the amendment.
I appreciate that and it has not gone unnoticed. I will finish up. Will the Minister of State please clarify this matter? This is hurting all of rural Ireland on top of all the other adverse things that have happened in recent times, with the nitrates derogation and the nature restoration law that was passed over in Europe the other day without any thought of how it was going to hurt small rural farmers in hillside places. Will the Minister of State please come out and explain where he is coming from with this? It is not fair and it does not make sense. He should check out the fifth wheel story because drivers did not have to have an artic licence unless they were driving a vehicle that was connected by a fifth wheel to the towing vehicle.
All my flexibility has been used up by now.
Mother of God, I would appreciate if there was a little bit left.
There was talk earlier about speed limits, which are a very serious concern in my constituency. We have great sympathy for anyone who gets hurt in an accident and it is a concern but there has been a low rate of deaths in west Cork, and I pray to God that this continues for the people there. However, we are driving in extreme circumstances in areas where our roads are in appalling conditions. The Government lowered the budget for improvements to roads last week. That was well noted. The Government's TD from Cork South-West said it was shocking that the Government was going ahead with it. If its own TDs are accepting that the Government is throwing in the towel, they are accepting that this is a dreadful situation.
A report by one of the companies found that if not enough money was spent on roads, there would be an increased number of deaths. We have also not taken into account that there has been a huge influx of people into this country and there is a huge number of people working here. That means there are a lot more cars and a lot more people coming and going from their communities and workplaces. That has to be factored in too. There will be more road accidents and road fatalities due to extra traffic on the roads.
Of course, the public transport problem is not taken into account. Public transport is scandalous in rural Ireland. We have been hearing forever about plans for new routes and new this and that. We have had only one new route, or one successful new route, since the Government came into play. It is the route from Ardgroom to Castletownbere and down into Bantry and Kilcrohane, on which I compliment the Government. Unfortunately, this means cars have to be on the road, which means extra cars and more accidents.
I will touch on an issue Deputy Healy Rae spoke about. The new licensing law is causing serious concerns. Tractor drivers are on the road and backing into the sites they are working on. These diligent young workers must now have an artic licence. Was it the Minister of State or the Minister, Deputy Ryan, who wrote this into law? We may be totally incorrect and they will not need an artic licence. If it is the case, however, it could lead to 3,000 or 4,000 job loses throughout the country. It could lead to people having to vacate building sites and road projects being halted. The Minister of State has to be clear on that issue. It is a very serious concern. It seems to be some sneaky kind of thing that has filtered in.
That would not surprise me, given the way things work here. As for roads I find that people driving on the roads at present find it more difficult because the roads are narrowing. New pathways are being built and beautiful greenways and then all of a sudden we realise that, actually two lorries will not pass on that road. Nobody gets fired because of that. I know of one road in Castletownbere where, were a lorry to come along at the same time as a Hymac, they would have to go up on the footpath to pass each other. That is outrageous. Somebody needs to lose their job over making such a cock-up.
When we look at the N71 and the R586 roads in west Cork from Bandon all the way down to Bantry via Enniskean, Ballineen and Dunmanway, no money is being spent on those roads; sometimes not even on pothole repair. The only bit of work that was done on the N71 under Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael was the bypass at Skibbereen. If we spend money on roads, we will not have fatalities. We will not have the desperate attempts people are making to try and drive on the roads. It could be the case that you could be held up and only doing 15 or 20 miles per hour on the N71, which is the main route into west Cork. Imagine being held up for all of that length of time doing 20, 25 or 30 miles per hour on a busy day when trying to get to work. That leads to frustration.
The licence issue is a very serious issue. I see the Minister of State is nodding away to himself. That needs to be clarified by the Minister of State. He has notified about it by people and we have certainly been notifying him. We would appreciate it if he could clarify the issue. It might be totally wrong and it might not happen but there will be thousands of job losses if this goes ahead.
I thank the Deputies for the items they raised. Some did not relate to the Bill but I am happy to come back on some of those.
Deputy Daly raised the issue of roadside testing. This would apply to any planned or random checkpoint in the context of testing, as per his question.
In the context of the RSA allocation, we found additional reserves in the RSA budget towards the end of last year which enabled us to fulfil its request for additional spending. This additional spending on advertising, communications and around public engagement was progressed towards the end of last year and early part of this year.
Other issues were raised in the context of regional local roads. There was an investment of €658 million in regional local roads and a portion of that is for safety improvement works. This funding will support 261 safety schemes to enhance road safety and we are also anxious to ensure the protection and renewal of our wider roads network, which was raised as well.
With regard to the licensing issue, which was flagged to me by a number of TDs today, the Department is engaging with the Road Safety Authority about the concerns that were raised. As Members are aware, much of licensing law is set at EU level but we are clarifying that and when I receive clarification from the Road Safety Authority, I will be in a position to come back to the Deputies and to others. A range of people across the House raised that issue with us today and we are seeking clarity from the Road Safety Authority on it.
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 2:
In page 9, lines 30 and 31, to delete “subsection (2) or (2A)” and substitute “subsection (2), (2A) or (2C)”.
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 3:
In page 9, lines 32 and 33, to delete “subsection (2) or (2A)” and substitute “subsection (2), (2A) or (2C)”.
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 4:
In page 9, after line 33, to insert the following:
“Amendment of section 10 of Act of 2010
13. Section 10 of the Act of 2010 is amended—
(a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (4):
“(4A) Where a member of the Garda Síochána, under paragraph (b) or (c) of subsection (4), requires a person to provide a specimen of oral fluid from his or her mouth, the member shall require the person to remain at a place (including a vehicle) at or in the vicinity of the checkpoint concerned (for a period that does not exceed 30 minutes after the provision of the specimen) until the apparatus referred to in subsection (4)(b) indicates the presence or absence of drugs in the specimen.”,
(b) in subsection (5), by the substitution of “(4) or (4A)” for “(4)”, and
(c) in subsection (6)(a), by the substitution of “subsection (4)(d)(ii)) or (4A)” for “subsection (4)(d)(ii))”.”.
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 5:
In page 9, after line 33, to insert the following:
“Amendment of section 22 of Act of 2010
14. Section 22 of the Act of 2010 is amended in subsection (1A) (inserted by section 13(i) of the Act of 2023) by the substitution of “subsection (2), (2A) or (2C)” for “subsection (2) or (2A)”.”.
Amendment agreed to.
Bill, as amended, received for final consideration.
Question proposed: "That the Bill do now pass."
I thank Deputies for their co-operation on this Bill. It will make a difference in addressing the worrying trend we have seen in fatalities, in particular last year, which had 188 deaths. The trend is still going in the wrong direction in 2024. The Bill will target three concerning areas, namely, penalty points reform, mandatory drug testing at the scene of serious collisions and the implementation of key recommendations of the speed limit review. It is a much-needed Bill that will assist in reversing this trend and I am eager to see the Bill progressed as quickly as possible. I look forward to going before the Seanad and I thank the officials and TDs in this House for their co-operation this evening.
Question put and agreed to.
Cuirfear an Bille ar aghaidh chuig an Seanad anois. The Bill will now be sent to the Seanad.
Cuireadh an Dáil ar athló ar 8.26 p.m. go dtí 9 a.m., Déardaoin, an 7 Márta 2024.
The Dáil adjourned at 8.26 p.m until 9 a.m. on Thursday, 7 March 2024.