Sir, - With Christmas and the New Year now almost upon us, I want to appeal to your readers not to drink and drive during the holidays.
In the Waterford-Kilkenny Garda division - which covers my own constituency - 453 motorists were arrested in the first 11 months of the year on suspicion of drink-driving. This figure suggests that the problem is a year-round one and that the anti-drink-driving message is still not getting through to everyone. Consequently, I'm calling for people to "think twice" before drinking and driving.
I would like to suggest some thoughts for those considering drinking before they drive. You might want to stop and think about the 390 people who died on the country's roads from the start of this year to December 13th. How will you feel if you're responsible for the next road death? Will it have been worth taking the chance on driving when you were over the limit? Will you be able to face the family of the person who has died? Could you live with the guilt?
With gardai planning to mount tens of thousands of checkpoints between now and mid-January, I also want motorists to think about the chance of being caught if they drive after drinking even a small amount of alcohol. If you drink and drive, you face the prospect of being stopped, breathalysed, arrested and taken to the nearest Garda station where you're likely to end up in a cell block with other criminals.
After months of worry, you will face a court appearance where, if you're found guilty, you're likely to be fined and lose your driving licence. The experience will be rounded off by having details of your case published in the local papers.
I'd also point out that this humiliation won't end the implications for those caught drinking and driving - something which happened to 1,100 motorists around the country during the Christmas holiday period last year. Even when convicted drink-drivers get their licences back, they can expect to pay dramatically higher insurance premiums. In the meantime, they will have lost the right to drive and may even have lost their jobs if their work involved driving.
So, as I said, please think twice before drinking and driving. - Yours, etc.,
Brendan Kenneally TD, Broad Street, Waterford.