Speech
Topical Issues Debate - Drug Driving - Speech by Minister McEntee
By: Minister for Justice; Helen McEntee
Published on
Last updated on
By: Minister for Justice; Helen McEntee
Published on
Last updated on
To ask the Minister for Justice for details of plans she and her department have to grant extra resources to An Garda Síochána to increase the provision of Drug Driving Car Testing.
– Deputy Kieran O’Donnell
Check against delivery
I would like to thank Deputy O’Donnell for raising this matter.
While An Garda Síochána has been testing Irish drivers for drugs, with the assistance of the Medical Bureau of Road Safety (MBRS), since 1999, the Deputy will be aware that the drug driving provisions in the Road Traffic Act 2016 were commenced by the Minister of Transport on 12 April 2017.
One of the key measures in the legislation provides for Preliminary Drug Testing, which enables Gardaí to test motorists at the roadside, whom they suspect of driving under the influence of drugs, and An Garda Síochána can establish roadside checkpoints, known as Mandatory Intoxicant Checkpoints (MITs), to test drivers for the presence of both alcohol and drugs.
The operation of Mandatory Intoxicant Testing (MIT) checkpoints and the enforcement of road traffic legislation are operational matters for the Garda Commissioner. As Minister, I have no role in these matters. I am assured, however, that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities, to ensure their optimum use.
An Garda Síochána enforcement figures indicate that 1,216 drug driving arrests were made in the first 6 months of 2020, compared to 591 in the first half of 2018. This represents a 106% increase in drug driving arrests, despite a 70% reduction in traffic during this period due to COVID-19 restrictions.
As the Deputy will be aware, the government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the maximum level of resources available to perform its policing duties and that An Garda Síochána has been allocated an unprecedented budget of €1.952 billion for 2021. This level of funding is enabling sustained, ongoing recruitment of Garda members and staff. As a result, there are now approximately 14,600 Garda members and over 3,000 Garda staff nationwide and Budget 2021 will allow for the recruitment of up to 620 new Gardaí and an extra 500 Garda staff.
This recruitment is supporting the redeployment of Gardaí from administrative to operational policing duties, where their training and expertise can be used to best effect.
An additional €22 million has been provided for Garda ICT to bring the total allocation to over €70 million for the second year in a row. There will also be continued investment in the Garda Fleet of €8 million in addition to the highest ever investment of approximately €15 million in the Garda Transport Fleet in 2020 – a proportion of which relates to the Garda COVID-19 response.
Budget 2021 provides An Garda Síochána with a significant resource allocation to support its vital enforcement role on our roads. Drug driving not only puts the driver at risk but also passengers and other road users. Preliminary Drug Testing strengthens the ability of Gardaí to tackle drug driving and I am committed to supporting this important statutory enforcement provision in my role as Minister for Justice.
ENDS