Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 February 2026
269. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Transport his views on safety concerns related to the makes of cars available for use on Irish roads; and whether he plans to take measures to address them (details supplied). [11295/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs Minister of State for International & Road Transport, Logistics, Rail & Ports, I wish to advise that EU Regulation 2018/858 requires any new vehicle sold in the EU market to have EU type-approval.
Type-approval is the process applied by national authorities to certify that a vehicle model meets all EU safety, environmental and conformity of production requirements, ensuring that new vehicles are manufactured to prescribed safety and environmental standards.
If all the relevant requirements are met, a national type-approval authority (in Ireland, this is the National Standards Authority of Ireland ) grants an EU vehicle type approval to the manufacturer, which authorises the sale of the vehicle type in the EU.
The system is based on the mutual recognition of approvals granted by Member States (that is to say, once a vehicle is certified once, it is accepted everywhere in the EU).
Every vehicle produced is accompanied by a certificate of conformity, in which the manufacturer certifies that the vehicle corresponds to the approved type. On the basis of this document, the vehicle can be registered anywhere in Europe. The type-approval system means that Ireland cannot refuse to register a vehicle which has been type-approved without being in breach of our obligations under EU law to uphold the free movement of goods in the EU.
The RSA has been appointed as the Automotive Market Surveillance Authority for Ireland in respect of all motor vehicles. This role is to ensure that new vehicles and their components meet with type-approval requirements under EU Regulation 2018/858 (eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32018R0858) and EU Regulation 168/2023. This applies to health, safety, the environment and any other aspect of public interest protection. On this basis, I have referred this question to the RSA for further reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response is not received within 10 days.
