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A FURTHER INVESTIGATION should take place into the wiping of penalty points by gardaí, the head of the Road Safety Authority has said.
Noel Brett says there are some matters in the initial internal report that would benefit from further investigation, and that the board of the RSA has recommended the matter be referred the Garda Ombudsman.
Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast, he said investigators should go back and speak to the initial whistleblower and interview gardaí who may have been involved in the practice but are now retired.
The internal investigation of the claims, sanctioned by Justice Minister Alan Shatter and overseen by Assistant Commissioner John O’Mahoney, found no evidence of corruption.
However, disciplinary proceedings were initiated against three gardai while a fourth officer faces prosecution over fraud charges.
The officer who raised the complaints was not interviewed as part of the internal review, and he was not given a right to reply to the findings of the report.
Speaking earlier this month, Transport Minister Leo Varadkar said a second investigation was “a good suggestion”, and that the RSA’s decision to ask the Garda Ombudsman to carry out that enquiry was “probably right”.
Another watchdog body, the Garda Inspectorate is carrying out further investigations, after the Government referred the original report, and there are currently no plans to have the Ombudsman also follow-up.
Noel Brett said it was his view that the Garda Ombudsman was the appropriate body to carry out any additional investigation, and said the probe could be carried out “without the need for a tribunal” or other costly process. He added:
“It’s important that the penalty points system is accepted by every single Irish road user as transparent, and that it has credibility.
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The RSA is a Quango costing the state €12 million pa. It serves no purpose. Road deaths have been falling steadily since the 70′s due to better technology in cars and better roads. At the start of 2013 it had €22 million of OUR money in its bank account.
Shut it down please
Here here. If anybody seriously thinks penalty points, the RSA and that self riotous SOB Varadkar have anything to with road safety they are probably the same gombeens cruising in the “fast lane” doing 90.
Totally agree. The RSA only produce stupid soft hitting adverts and a few comments on social media sites and very little else.
Were all those bloody crash ads not the RSA aswell? Id hardly call them soft hitting.
Ciaran. Very true. If they can’t answer a question on a road sign that was taken down from every major road artery in and out of Dublin overnight they are a waste of space.
My point is whatever work they do could be absorbed into the dept of transport. We don’t need another CEO on 160k+ pension, retiring at 55 to be replaced by another political lackey on the same package.
Quango create thousands of unnecessary over paid McJobs for friends of politicians.
They’re trying to find €3 billion in the October budget. Closing many of the 1,100 + quangos and laying the staff off – not parachuting them into another part of the PS (ala Mrs Eamonn Gilmore) would find more than €3 billion. The money for redundancies is already in Quango accounts. And we’d save a fortune in pension payments down the road
This has been flogged to death. Really need to start putting effort in to the Anglo tapes. Screw inquires. These guys need to be behind bars.
With everything that’s gone on this week, it’s all creating a perfect storm where people are starting to realise just how badly shafted and treated they’ve been. Back in recession, the Anglo tapes, multiple ministerial ineptness, penalty points, nothing done about tribunal findings… The list is endless. And mass repossessions now on the cards with government backing as well as more austerity budgets. Hardly equality is it? The bottom line is our establishment, across the board, at best are not up to the job and at worse, well, people have their own minds to figure that one out.
And after all the cheap talk and bullsh1t from our elected officials we are officially back in recession !!!
If they need a second report it means they didn’t do it right the first time. So, they shouldn’t get paid, then.
What’s the point in having a Garda Ombudsman if they don’t investigate matters like this?
And what’s the point of a Garda ombudsman if the gardai refuse to cooperate, as in a couple of recent cases.
penalty points ….yawn yawn ,
we have more important fish to fry FFS ,
the media should see to it , that Anglo is the main story for years to come ,
not this micky mouse sh1te
@ sean…let justice be done even if the very heavens fall for to do other wise is to be a party to lies dam lies and the cover up
yes I know Harry ,
but if they start an investigation into this , you can bet your bottom euro , they will then come out and say
“we don’t have enough resources to investigate the Anglo Tapes/Banking scandal ,
this is what irish politicans do ,
so let the penalty points take a back seat , and let’s focus on doing everything necessary to bring the Economic Terrorists to Justice
the whole system is faltering and failing the common people The pr coming from the top brass is but a way of conning the people The WRONGS are so clear and the said system is judging itself .The corruption behind closed doors needs to be dealt with for policing has lost all credibility
Would Minister for Justice Shatter care to comment?
No.
Didn’t think so!
While the Garda Ombudsman is at it get them to look into the leaking of opposition TD’s names in relation to false & un-recorded Garda allegations of wrong doing in relation to road traffic offenses. “And the truth shall set them free”, the Gardai that is.
Good on the RSA for keeping up pressure on garda top brass as they are not up to the job.do this investigation properly sack the dodgy guards and move on.
I’m returning my penalty points today.
They are clearly not working.
What a great example from Mr Road Safety himself, I often wonder are these people exempt from penalty points. Or was it the unfortunate chauffeur who received them plus the fine https://www.google.com/search?q=gay+byrne+not+wearing+seatbelt&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&client=safari
We need to have a first investigation never mind 2nd.
No one can consider the first one a serious investigation.
The last investigation amounted to little more than a Garda ar$e covering exercise.
id love to know how sean quinn will fair out now think it looks good for him as everything anglo did was wrong. its a disgrace he was locked up.
No it’s not a disgrace he should be locked up and several more with him.
Locked up for what offence?? Quinn looking more and more like a scape goat.
Hope there’s tapes of them discussing Quinn.
What Sean did after the collapse of Anglo is where all his legal difficulties stem for and why he needs to be held to account.
It is as perverse that he is walking the streets as any of them.
That said great man to bring and create jobs but how many new Sean Quinns have had to emigrate from Fermanagh and Cavan and Monaghan because of him and his type.
Previously on Dolonation Street…
This is clearly being brought up again to distract from the real problems. It’s bull as per usual no one thinks this is the main issue that needs addressing at the moment.
Just so–if a fecking traffic points inquiry gets kicked behind the sofa, I imagine an investigation into the fecking AIB/government conspiracy to defraud the people will be taken out to the strand and buried at the low tide mark. Don’t let the Bozos drive the bus, my friends.
Join Dublin Says No march from Central Bank, Dame Street to Garden of Remembrance via O’Connell St this Sunday at 12.00
quinn for………………. president
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