Rights around driving my UK car in Ireland

[Right Winger]

Really? Can you cite something to support that statement?

There's been quite an incidence throughout the world of COVID era fines and penalties being overturned or quietly dropped. Happened in the UK and more spectacularly in Australia.

https://www.theguardian.com/austral...s-withdrawn-in-nsw-after-adverse-court-ruling

4,000 Covid lockdown fines are dropped by Met Police

Reasons for dropping referrals included where the person had a ‘reasonable excuse’ for breaking lockdown rules

www.standard.co.uk

Even uber-liberal- lefty California! https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/covid-19-fines-court-ruling-san-jose-church/2979251/

And ultra authoritarian UAE https://english.alarabiya.net/coron...-50-percent-discount-on-unpaid-COVID-19-fines

Even Canada, perhaps the ultimate nanny state, is reluctantly getting with the program. https://vancouversun.com/news/local...violation-tickets-dropped-many-more-go-unpaid

Here, I suspect it's more a case of prosecutions withering on the vine. I don't see much evidence of Guards enthusiastically following up unpaid COVID fixed penalty notices from 2020/2021.

 

[ClubMan]

There's been quite an incidence throughout the world of COVID era fines and penalties being overturned or quietly dropped. Happened in the UK and more spectacularly in Australia.

https://www.theguardian.com/austral...s-withdrawn-in-nsw-after-adverse-court-ruling

4,000 Covid lockdown fines are dropped by Met Police

Reasons for dropping referrals included where the person had a ‘reasonable excuse’ for breaking lockdown rules

www.standard.co.uk

Even uber-liberal- lefty California! https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/covid-19-fines-court-ruling-san-jose-church/2979251/

And ultra authoritarian UAE https://english.alarabiya.net/coron...-50-percent-discount-on-unpaid-COVID-19-fines

Even Canada, perhaps the ultimate nanny state, is reluctantly getting with the program. https://vancouversun.com/news/local...violation-tickets-dropped-many-more-go-unpaid

Here, I suspect it's more a case of prosecutions withering on the vine. I don't see much evidence of Guards enthusiastically following up unpaid COVID fixed penalty notices from 2020/2021.

I thought that we were talking about Ireland here?
We're not part of the empire anymore, you know?

Here, I suspect it's more a case of prosecutions withering on the vine. I don't see much evidence of Guards enthusiastically following up unpaid COVID fixed penalty notices from 2020/2021

Perhaps because they were paid?
Do you have access to Garda internal systems?

 

[Marsupial]

In my experience, the gardai and judiciary appear a lot more willing to waive fines and penalties for relatively minor offences than the Revenue Commissioners do! Revenue appear to take their statutory duty to collect as much money as possible the exchequer very seriously indeed.

 

[Right Winger]

I thought that we were talking about Ireland here?

Yes, but in the absence of concrete Irish data, we must reason by analogy.

We're not part of the empire anymore, you know?

Indeed! We are, though, a common law jurisdiction, like the UK, Australia, Canada, California and, to some extent, the UAE. Their experience can be instructive. We share traits like adversarial, rather than inquisitorial, court processes, where the prosecution MUST prove every ingredient of an offence beyond reasonable doubt. The defendant need prove nothing - the burden of proof is entirely on the prosecution. So the prosecuting Garda must prove, beyond reasonable doubt, that a defendant did NOT have a reasonable excuse to leave his house. Without an admission from the defendant, that's an almost insurmountable problem. So I wouldn't expect much Garda time and resources to be expended on such prosecutions. Even the Garda Commissioner, was less than enthusiastic about the prospect of heavy duty enforcement. https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-40070081.html

Perhaps because they were paid?

I doubt it. The Irish Times suggests likewise.

Majority of Covid law offenders refuse to pay fine

Thousands of District Court summonses currently being issued, Garda warns

www.irishtimes.com

Do you have access to Garda internal systems?

Unfortunately not. Do you? But anyway, don't you think that if the State had been successful in collecting the penalty charges, or prosecuting the offences, they'd be trumpeting this from the rafters? Pour encourager les autres. Absence of evidence is not always evidence of absence, but I'd suggest, in this case, it's highly suggestive of a lack of intention to do much else.

 

[T McGibney]

Yes, but in the absence of concrete Irish data, we must reason by analogy.

There's no need to reason by analogy. The Irish Disctrict Courts have in recent months been busy imposing fines and other minor penalties for breaches of Covid restrictions. at least going by the court reports in local papers.

 

[Right Winger]

There's no need to reason by analogy. The Irish Disctrict Courts have in recent months been busy imposing fines and other minor penalties for breaches of Covid restrictions. at least going by the court reports in local papers.

Fair enough, I wouldn't be an avid reader of local papers, but I'll bow to your better knowledge of that. I'd still be curious as to what overall figures are here though.
Also worth noting there's a few High Court appeals underway.

 

[Purple]

No need to raise it, it's not that they are wrong, there just isn't a law to support the statement. And people jump to conclusions without actually asking the question. So here it is" what law supports the statement"?

Do remember that if they take your car you are the one who had to prove they are wrong, they don't have to prove they are right.

Just a hunch here but are you anything to the Burkes?

 

[Luternau]

Do remember that if they take your car you are the one who had to prove they are wrong, they don't have to prove they are right.

Just a hunch here but are you anything to the Burkes?

Memories of that Programme Stop Search Sieze that followed the Irish Customs at road side check. It was comical viewing as drivers disputed the legislation. All had to pay the fine and VRT later to keep the car. Some may have challenged fines in court but the law on VRT is pretty tight. They all knew what they were doing was dodging VRT.