Complete ban of sale of scramblers not ruled out as Cabinet approve Grace's Law
The complete ban of sale of scramblers to the general public has not been ruled out, as the Roads Safety Minister said “all issues” are being looked at.Proposals to implement an outright ban on scrambler use in public places, including roads, was approved by Cabinet today. Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the legislation will be called Grace’s Law.The ban comes after Grace Lynch, 16, was killed after being struck by a scrambler while crossing the Ratoath road in Finglas on January 25. Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien said the outright ban will make enforcement easier for gardaí, as they will be able to seize any scrambler being driven in a public place.Under the new proposals, the vehicles will only be allowed for use on private property, such as a farm. Currently, as of the Roads Act 2023, it is illegal to drive a scrambler dangerously and gardaí have power to seize them.While the majority of scramblers are off-road vehicles and are already illegal, some that have registration and insurance are currently legal. These will no longer be allowed under the new law, with Minister O’Brien insisting this new clarity will result in better enforcement from gardaí.However, Detective Garda Mark Ferris, who works in Finglas, previously told this paper that gardaí are not trained to pursue scramblers. He said: “People sometimes see footage online of Garda cars following suspects, but these members are taking enormous personal risks. "There is not a single Garda in the country who is trained or authorised to engage in a pursuit.”Minister O’Brien said he does believe gardaí have the tools to enforce this new regulation. He said: “Enforcement is critical. This is a nationwide issue, but it is particularly prevalent in some concentrated areas, and that's where the focus needs to go and needs to be made, because we're dealing with this and we're going to go hard on this.“Critically, what Grace's law does here is remove any grey area with regard to if a scrambler is seen on a road in a park, at a playing pitch, it's illegal, and they can be seized, and we want them seized, and we want them destroyed.”The Transport Minister said it is up to An Garda Síochána what vehicle is used by members to catch those on scramblers. Some police forces in the UK use their own off-road scramblers to catch those illegally driving them.Roads Safety Minister Sean Canney said after the regulation comes into effect, he will be looking at licensing them for sports clubs. However, he didn’t rule out the possibility of scramblers being completely banned for import and sale.He said: “At this stage, we're looking at all of the issues that are there, officials with Department of Justice and the gardaí are looking at all the other issues in relation to the scramblers but also in relation to E scooters and all of these other, what I would call modern types of transport, that are now available.“People are getting injured, people are frightened.” Asked why this wasn’t enacted when the Road Safety Act was passed in 2023, Minister O’Brien said: “The regulations were in between Justice and our own Department of Transport and the Attorney General, and they weren't included.“And would that have stopped the situation and stopped that tragic event and saved Grace his life? The reality is that the changes that were made, did make a difference, and have made a difference. In the particular instance with Grace's death, they obviously didn't.”Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
