Random breath testing legislation will be introduced before the summer, Tánaiste Mary Harney told the Dáil. Following a Cabinet sub-committee meeting yesterday morning, Ms Harney said Minister for Transport Martin Cullen would introduce the legislation to ensure "clarity and certainty" on the issue.
Amid confusion over whether legislation was essential, the Tánaiste said random breath testing could not be introduced on a widespread scale, without such legislation. With random breath testing a garda can ask a motorist at any point to take a test, by blowing into a bag to determine alcohol levels.
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny, who raised the issue, claimed the Attorney General had advised the Government before Christmas that random breath testing was unconstitutional. "Subsequently the Taoiseach said everything was constitutional and legal.
"Yesterday he gave a reply that you would required a PhD in advanced English to decipher," Mr Kenny said.
"Based on the advice the Government was given before Christmas and the current position, are the gardaí entitled to conduct random breath testing or can it happen only after legislation has been passed," he asked.
Ms Harney said: "The Attorney General did not suggest that random breath testing was unconstitutional. His advice was that there were constitutional issues and it had to be dealt with in a certain way. Legislation is necessary," she said.
"Of course the Garda are free to establish checkpoints where they believe they are appropriate but the Attorney General has advised that to ensure clarity and certainty, new legislation would be required to introduce random breath testing for drink driving." When Mr Kenny asked: "Can we not have breath testing without the legislation?", she replied: "Not on a widespread scale."
