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Leah Farrell/RollingNews.ie

Almost 90% of motorists disqualified this year have not surrendered their licences

The figure is the lowest rate in the past five years.

FEWER THAN ONE in eight motorists disqualified from driving so far in 2019 have surrendered their driving licence as required by law – the lowest rate in the past five years.

New figures show that just 13% of drivers put off the road this year have handed back their licence to the Road Safety Authority.

Figures provided by Transport Minister Shane Ross, show that 1,257 motorists out of 9,656 disqualified by either the courts or exceeding the maximum permitted level of penalty points up to 15 November have surrendered their licence.

Over 4,000 of those disqualified – 42% of all motorists banned from driving so far this year – have failed to respond to notices seeking the return of their licence.

Almost 4,400 other disqualified drivers had no valid Irish driving licence to surrender as they either had no licence, an expired licence or a foreign licence.

Road safety campaigners have expressed concern that the proportion of motorists banned from driving who surrender their licence has been falling in recent years, despite repeated calls on the authorities to address the issue.

The levels have fallen from a peak of 19% in 2015 to 14% in 2018 and 13% in the year to date.

PARC road safety group chairperson, Susan Gray, said the latest figures, provided in response to a parliamentary question from independent TD Tommy Broughan, showed that the system for ensuring disqualified drivers stayed off the roads was broken.

“The problem is getting worse and the RSA and other authorities don’t seem to be doing anything about it. They do not seem to be taking this problem seriously,” said Gray.

She added: “More and more people are taking the chance of not handing back their licence. You can be guaranteed that a lot of them are not doing so because they want to be able to continue to drive.

“If there was a proper system in place, there would not be a problem.”

Breakdown between authorities

PARC claims there is a breakdown between the various authorities with responsibility for overseeing the disqualification of drivers and the surrender of licences – the RSA, the Department of Transport, the Courts Service and gardaí – in ensuring details of all banned motorists are recorded and enforced.

“Everyone seems to blame another agency for what is happening,” said Gray.

All disqualified motorists are contacted by either the Courts Service or the RSA and instructed their licence must be surrendered to the RSA’s National Driver Licence Service in Cork within 14 days of the disqualification.

Failure to surrender a driving licence following disqualification is an offence, which carries a maximum fine of €1,000 on first conviction and up to €2,000 on a second or further conviction.

The penalty for driving while disqualified is a fine of up to €5,000 and/or a prison term of six months.

RSA chief executive, Moyagh Murdock, has described the level of compliance as “entirely unacceptable” and claimed there was a cultural problem with the issue.

‘Abuse of process’

Earlier this year, Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan, described the issue of disqualified drivers continuing to drive as “a blatant abuse of the criminal justice process” and the figures on surrender rates as “stark and totally unacceptable”.

PARC also criticised the lack of enforcement as well as prosecutions and convictions of motorists caught driving during periods of disqualification.

The number of gardaí attached to Roads Policing Units has fallen from 744 at the start of the year to 679 by the end of October – a 9% decrease – despite increased staffing levels overall in the force.

A RSA spokesperson said the responsibility for the recording of a disqualification in the courts was a matter for the Courts Service under the Road Traffic Act 2002.

“Probably the most important aspect of this issue is whether someone who is disqualified continues to drive, regardless of whether or not they have surrendered their licence,” the spokesperson said.

He said the RSA believed the rollout of new hand-held devices which would allow gardaí to check the real-time licensing status of motorists would be “a significant step forward in addressing this issue.”

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    Mute Mark
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:38 PM

    Are playdates ok ? NO!

    286
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    Mute Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:47 PM

    @Mark: Playdates were never ok. Heard a top child and family psychologist on the radio a few weeks ago speaking about how they’re needless and normally only an excuse for parents to get together to gossip about other parents! Children get plenty social interaction at creche, preschool, school or even at home with their families!!

    61
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    Mute Angel Drake
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    Mar 13th 2020, 7:39 PM

    @Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: how old are your children?? Because if u had children in junior infants and third class ud know they always ask for play dates, top psychologist? Please name? Because play dates I feel builds there self esteem and gives them cultural or social differental experiences.

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    Mute Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin
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    Mar 13th 2020, 9:05 PM

    @Angel Drake: I’m patently aware of the needs of school-aged children and of the myriad of research that overwhelmingly indicates that play dates are not necessary for social development. Informal play with siblings etc. and interaction in school-based settings is far more valuable than the kind of contrived and overly structured situations that parents conjure up.

    11
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    Mute Kevin Bury
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    Mar 13th 2020, 11:43 PM

    @Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin: seriously, go pet ur cat

    40
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    Mute Shakka1244
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:50 PM

    Kids can catch it and kids can spread it.
    Please everyone, just for a few weeks, assume you have the virus and act like you don’t want to spread it.
    We all need to work together here !

    233
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    Mute Shakka1244
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:27 PM

    @David Jordan: Please ignore this. It’s pure lies.
    .
    @journal, please remove this dangerous misinformation. I’ve seen this poster spout this rubbish on loads of threads.

    17
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    Mute Shakka1244
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    Mar 13th 2020, 7:05 PM

    @Shakka1244: thank you @journal
    Fair pkay

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    Mute Quentin Moriarty
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    Mar 13th 2020, 7:25 PM

    @Shakka1244: ????????

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    Mute Shakka1244
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    Mar 13th 2020, 9:07 PM

    @Quentin Moriarty: someone called David Jordan keeps posting the same stuff saying kids can’t catch it or spread it. Completely false. I asked for his post to be removed.

    18
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    Mute Dino
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    Mar 13th 2020, 10:04 PM

    @Shakka1244: thank god, if it wasn’t for people like you I don’t know what we would do

    2
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    Mute Bleurgh
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:59 PM

    Look people it’s 2 weeks, with your children….relax! It’s good for kids to be bored. I have friends who grew up in rural Ireland in the 80s, who wouldn’t see anyone outside their family for 2 or 3 weeks over the summer.
    I have muted my kids classes WhatsApp groups, I am so annoyed at the parents talking with such dread of being at home with their own children in their own house. I’d rather my kids at home than visiting them in icu. Myself and himself are trying to do working from
    Home in shifts.
    Also I hate play dates with a passion, I wish for the days that kids knocked on the door to play!
    Deal with it, it’s a few weeks!

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    Mute Paddy Dunne
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:45 PM

    @Bleurgh: it’s not going to be 2 weeks it’s going to be at least a month 2 weeks is preliminary 4 days to Easter hols there will be no school till after Easter

    50
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    Mute Tommy Roche
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:50 PM

    @Bleurgh: There is absolutely no way this is just a 2 week closure. The governments plan is to try delay the peak of infection until late spring/early summer when the usual winter type ailments all but die out, thus leaving the health services under a little less pressure and better able to focus on this particular virus. Even the governments experts are saying our peak is at least weeks away, if not months, so how would it make any sense to reopen schools when the situation is going to be worse on the 29th March than it is now ? Ive no doubt the closure will be extended until after the easter break, and if at that point the number of infections are still rising then anything is possible. Wouldn’t be one bit surprised if the closures run up to the summer holidays and schools dont reopen until next Sept.

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    Mute Jacqueline McCabe
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:47 PM

    No

    25
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    Mute Arya
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:42 PM

    How are the children learning at home? Is there tools online from the schools or department of education?

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    Mute Johnny BeGoode
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:44 PM

    @Arya: The educational website twinkl is offering free membership to all parents this month, this is a fantastic resource. Go to www.twinkl.ie/offer and enter the code IRLTWINKLHELPS

    52
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    Mute Record Sunshine
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:45 PM

    @Arya: mine are learning all about Zelda at the moment. They’re in primary school and a few weeks of doing f all won’t harm their career prospects.

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    Mute Bríd
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:45 PM

    @Arya: Yes, there’s lots of online classroom resources. Many schools are using Google Classroom and Edmodo as well as sending links home, textbooks and assigning research projects.

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    Mute Dave Harris
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    Mar 13th 2020, 5:47 PM

    @Arya: my junior infant will have daily lessons on seesaw. Used it today and its great

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    Mute Sarah Green
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:00 PM

    @Arya: My son’s school is doing work with the pupils via their iPads.

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    Mute Bleurgh
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:00 PM

    @Arya: teachers in primary have sent home packs for kids to do. At second level many have platforms where teachers have uploaded work

    16
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    Mute Towger
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    Mar 13th 2020, 6:30 PM

    @Arya: My secondary children had a full day of school online today, following their normal timetable. The school is using MS Teams. By all accounts it went better than expected.

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    Mute Adam Conroy
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    Mar 13th 2020, 7:20 PM

    @Arya: they’re using online platforms. In fairness though, most education happens at home. A month out of school won’t do any harm.

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    Mute Mark Porter
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    Mar 13th 2020, 7:50 PM

    @Arya: our secondary school has online access to subjects and work.

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    Mute Kevin Bury
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    Mar 13th 2020, 11:47 PM

    @Record Sunshine: 78 thumbs up…. villages and their idiots

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    Mute Kevin Thompson
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    Mar 14th 2020, 7:55 AM

    Regardless whether it is 2 weeks or 2 months to mind your own children, it would be a great opportunity to teach them not to be selfish a**holes in hoarding as their adult counterparts and learn how to look after the more vulnerable in society

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    Mute Mark Porter
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    Mar 13th 2020, 7:48 PM

    2 weeks is the isolation period.

    2
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