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The Green Party has called on the
Minister for Justice Michael McDowell to acknowledge that the
responsibility for Ireland's poor ranking on the enforcement of road
safety law rests with him.
Green Party Justice spokesperson Ciarán Cuffe TD said today that,
"Michael McDowell is responsible for ensuring the enforcement of
legislation governing the rules of the road. Yet, in the past number
of weeks we have seen the Minister attempting to abdicate himself of
this responsibility by placing the burden for the mounting death
toll on the shoulders of the driving public. At the end of April the
Minister was quoted as saying that 'driver safety is primarily an
issue for drivers'. Not so Minister, driver safety is, in fact,
primarily an issue for Government.
"The Report on the Enforcement of Road Safety Law in Europe,
compiled by the European Transport Safety Council, places Ireland
13th out of the 25 member states of the European Union. There is no
reason why Ireland should be languishing mid-table in a study on
road safety enforcement measures.
"The report recommends the immediate introduction of random breath
testing in order to combat our poor record on drink driving control.
The Swedish police force is currently leading the way in the fight
against drink driving, equipping every member of its 17,000 strong
force with breathalysers.
"The Minister should look to this example as a template for action
on Irish roads. Leadership is required to cut the carnage, and
Minister McDowell must play his part in reducing the death toll on
Irish roads," concluded Deputy Cuffe.
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