Ireland: Provisional Licence Law Change -Noel Brett, CEO of the Road Safety Authority discusses implications

Embedded from RTE.IE

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The law requiring learner drivers on a second provisional licence to be accompanied by a fully qualified driver comes into effect from midnight tonight.
The change in the driving licence system, announced by Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey last year, affects up to 92,000 people.
Holders of all other provisional licences are already required to be accompanied.
Drivers may only get a third or later provisional licence if they can show that they have taken a driving test within the previous two years....(RTE )

According to Sean O'Rourke on RTE Radio News At One programme Assistant Garda Commissioner Eddie Rock has stated that the guards " Will be applying the law in an appropriate and proportional manner".

Ireland-Who will be the next leader of FF?

Today in the Dail Enda Kenny and Eamon Gilmore attacked Bertie Ahern’s evidence to the Mahon Tribunal. Brian Cowen’s defence was interesting to say the least. He concentrated his fire mainly on FG and Enda Kenny. He gave qualified support to Bertie Ahern. He stated that Mr. Ahern had the support of the Dail and the FF party. He also emphasized that Mr Ahern would continue to lead while he holds that confidence. Cowen’s defence left few hostages to fortune.

Ever since Bertie Ahern announced that he intended to stand down as leader, aspiring candidates for the leadership have begun to prepare the ground for the impending contest. Bertie Ahern’s decision to anoint Cowen as his successor has not deterred Micheal Martin, Dermot Ahern and Noel Dempsey. It has fueled some thinly disguised resentment among likely leadership candidates.

The assumption amongst most media commentators and cognoscenti is that Cowen is home and dry. Nevertheless there is many a slip twixt cup and lip.
Cowen was a strong supporter of Albert Reynolds and belonged to the country and western wing of the party. Superficially he has huge support within the party. Nevertheless much of this support is soft and could desert Cowen. Micheal Martin had links with the Haughey wing. To a certain extent the Haughey and country and western wings still exist within FF. Martin will have huge support from Munster TDs and Senators and from many in the Haughey/Ahern wing. He cannot be ruled out.

In addition Dermot Ahern is able and could be a dark horse.

A vigorous leadership contest has the potential to reopen old animosities. If such a scenario were to unfold Brian Lenihan could emerge as a compromise leader.

Ireland-Provisional licence rules deferred until June 30th 2008

Minister Dempsey said on RTÉ's This Week programme that he was deferring the introduction of the accompanied driver provision until 30 June 2008. The original announcement-allowing provisional drivers four days to put alternatives in place- provided clear cut evidence that the Government was out of touch on this issue. The incipient revolt frightened the Minister and Government.This is a major blow for Noel Dempsey's leadership ambitions. Perhaps he should heed the following advice: Festina Lente.

Ireland-Provisional Licence debacle

Once more Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey finds himself in the eye of a storm. He announced yesterday that all provisional drivers, including those on their second provisional, must be accompanied by a driver who has held a full licence for a minimum of two years.The penalties for breaching this are a fine of up to €1,000 and possible disqualification from driving. The same penalties will apply to provisional drivers who do not display an L-plate.
In principle this is a good idea. However it is impractical and unjust in the short term. The average waiting time for a driving test is eighteen weeks. Unfortunately waiting times of five months or more are not unknown.

Fine Gael Road Safety Spokesman Shane McEntee TD has called on the Government to implement provisional driving licence reforms only when the driving test backlog has been removed, as Martin Cullen argued when he was Transport Minister. Deputy McEntee said the Government had had ten years to implement an overhaul of the driving licence regime but is now telling 400,000 provisional licence holders they have just four days to comply with the new regulations.

"Noel Dempsey's proposals to reform the provisional driving licence regime are unworkable and unreasonable because they give drivers no time to make alternative arrangements, let alone take a driving test..."
This statement from Shane McEntee encapsulates the problem quite nicely.

Today Mr Dempsey has further compounded the problem and added to the confusion. He said today that although the law would come into effect next Tuesday, gardaí would take a measured approach to enforcement "using discretion and common sense as opposed to automatic prosecution".
This is a debacle from which the Minister may not recover.

Shannon to Heathrow issue-press release

A press release from the Department of Transport following a Cabinet meeting on the Shannon to Heathrow issue states:

"It was agreed that the Minister for Transport, on behalf of Government, would do all in his power to assist the Shannon Airport Authority to secure alternative London Heathrow services."

This means that the Government will not use its 25% share in Aer Lingus to save the Shannon-Heathrow route. It will vote to support the company's decision to axe the route. Over the last few days there have been judicious leaks from government sources geared towards softening up public opinion in the West and Mid West.

The newly-formed Atlantic Connectivity Alliance also sent a fact file to each minister detailing the implications to business and tourism.

A representative of the Alliance was interviewed on RTE News tonight. He sounded enthusiastic about the Government's attitude to the Mid West.

No wonder Noel Dempsey is not too worried. Representatives of the Alliance should spare their enthusiasm for concrete actions rather than woolly promises.

Others from the Mid West were not as enthusiastic and were quite critical.The Government appears to have neutered the opposition of the Atlantic Connectivity Alliance whilst there is no prospect of FF TDs in the Mid West voting en bloc against the Government.

A serious threat by the FF TDs in the Mid West to bring down the Government on the issue could achieve the desired result of restoring the Shannon to Heathrow route. The FF TDs in the Mid West are not serious. The Government knows this.

The score stands at FF 1 Mid West 0.