Long-term L-drivers are gaming the system – RSA

More than 37,000 drivers are on their fourth or subsequent learner’s permit

MORE than 37,000 people are on their fourth or subsequent learner driving permit and some motorists appear to “game” the system, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) has said.

The wider concerns around learner driving come as Agriculture Minister Barry Cowen refused to disclose how he managed to get to the age of 49 without acquiring a full driver’s licence.

The Irish Independent revealed how Mr Cowen was disqualified from driving for three months after a drinkdriving incident in September 2016.

The Fianna Fáil TD was 49 and still had a learner’s permit when that incident occurred.

Speaking in the Dáil last night Mr Cowen apologised again for the drink-driving incident which he said was a “stupid, stupid mistake”.

He said he was driving on a learner permit as his provisional licence had lapsed.

He argued that before “recent and proper reforms” of the system “it was not uncommon for people of all ages and levels of experience to drive with either a provisional or a learner permit”. He said this had been “bad practice”.

Figures provided by the RSA show that more than 37,000 people are on their fourth or subsequent driving permit.

According to Central Statistics Office figures there were more than 2.9 million people with a full driving licence at the end of 2018. Those drivers on their fourth or subsequent learner permits make up just under 1.3pc of that total.

Of that total, 7,128 are on their fourth and 6,554 are using their 11th learner permit or higher, according to data compiled in January.

There has been a reduction in the number of drivers on their fourth permit or higher since January 2019.

That is being partly put down to the fact that since December 2018 it has been against the law for car owners to let unaccompanied learners drive their vehicle.

An RSA spokesman said it is difficult to say why so many are relying on a permit for so long. He suggested that it could be nerves for motorists who have failed the test several times.

The spokesman also said: “Others, however, appear to have no intention of passing the test and ‘game’ the system to avoid taking one. Those who deliberately roll over their permit and have no intention of taking a test need to make serious efforts to pass.

“It’s unacceptable and it has to stop.”

In his Dáil statement Mr Cowen did not provide an explanation for why he was still driving on a learner permit in 2016 despite mounting pressure for him to do so.

Instead he said: “I clearly should have regularised my position much sooner.”

He also said he “subsequently secured and now holds a full, clean driving licence”.

Mr Cowen said: “My decision in September 2016 to drive home after consuming any alcohol was a stupid, stupid mistake.

“It never happened before September 18, 2016, and it has never happened since. It is a mistake for which I am profoundly sorry.”

He said the criticism he received was “fully deserved”.

He said that reporting of the incident has extended to include “various parking and speeding fines that I have incurred over the years”.

Mr Cowen said “a constant drip feed of new information can be damaging and destabilising” and he conducted a full examination of all records that he could attain. He said the only additional event he could identify was a fine for failing to display a tax disc 14 years ago.

Mr Cowen said he hopes the “grave error” in relation to the drink-driving incident and his “subsequent humiliation” will “serve to highlight the terrible dangers and consequences of drink-driving”.

He said he apologised to his family, the Taoiseach, the Government and the general public. Mr Cowen also told the Dáil that he had contacted road safety campaigners to apologise for the hurt caused.

He said he wants to focus on his job as Agriculture Minister, on delivering the Programme for Government, and representing his Laois-Offaly constituents.

His statement to the Dáil came after he faced Opposition calls to answer outstanding questions on his driving history. Labour Party leader Alan Kelly said Mr Cowen had “paid his debts to society” in relation to the drink-driving incident but he had to provide “clarity” on his “licensing situation”.

Earlier in the day Rise TD Paul Murphy said it was “not acceptable” that Mr Cowen would give a Dáil statement but take no questions.

He claimed: “There are numerous questions outstanding relating to the offence itself, relating to the status of his driving licence, relating to whether he was repeatedly in breach of the law in terms of ‘L’ plates, in terms of accompanying drivers.”

The Government blocked Mr Murphy’s bid to scrap yesterday’s Dáil business in the absence of an opportunity to ask questions of Mr Cowen.