The road Safety Authority (RSA) is tendering for a legal firm to carry out prosecutions on its behalf for breaches of road haulage legislation after the Chief State Solicitor’s Office said it is no longer in a position to take such cases.
The change relates to prosecutions taken by transport officers tasked with checking tachographs and commercial drivers’ working hours, and general compliance with the Road Transport Working Time Directive.
This function transferred from the Department of Transport to the RSA in September 2006, but the legislative authority, allowing the RSA to warrant its transport officers to carry out their enforcement functions, only transferred earlier this year.
The Director of Public Prosecutions and the Chief State Solicitor’s Office has responsibility for the prosecution of all indictable crime in the State.
A number of regulatory entities have been given powers to prosecute summarily without the DPP’s consent or direction. These include the RSA, the Health and Safety Authority and the Director of Corporate Enforcement.
Last December the RSA was informed by the department that the Chief State Solicitor would no longer take new prosecutions on behalf of the RSA.
An RSA spokesman said it was hoping to appoint a private prosecutorial firm in the near future.
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