14,000 lorry offenders but licences not revoked; ROADS.

Byline: MICHELLE O'KEEFFE

THE Government has not revoked any haulage licences since 2007 despite 14,000 infringements, it emerged yesterday.

The Department of Transport has being alerted by gardai and UK authorities about the offences but no driver has lost his licence in two years.

Irish Road Haulage Association president Vincent Caulfield said the failure allowed rogue firms to remain on the road.

Mr Caulfield added: "When we met the Minister for Transport to discuss this matter two months ago he said that to revoke a licence could breach the Constitution because it would harm that person's ability to earn a living.

"Hauliers are obliged to re-apply for their licence every five years and the department is required to conduct a background check to confirm the applicant is of good character.

"All convictions for breaches for road haulage laws here or in the UK should show up then.

"But a lad who spent time in jail in the UK for drugs offences got a licence so I am not sure how thorough the check is."

There were 6,251 road transport incidents recorded on Pulse last year.

A Department of Transport spokesman said: "Legislation governing haulage licence revocation is being reviewed as the legal and constitutional issues in this area have proven to be complex."