Debate contribution: Driver Testing and Licensing Reforms

Debate contribution by Ms Liz Kimmins on 27 January 2026.

MLA

Ms Liz Kimmins

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

27 January 2026

Type

Debate contribution (made as a minister)

Business

Question for Urgent Oral Answer

Heading

Driver Testing and Licensing Reforms

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5345366

Read the official Assembly record

Text

The introduction of GDL has been a long journey and has been subject to two public consultations during that time. As I have stated previously, it was first introduced in 2016 when it was legislated for in the Assembly. The development of the legislative framework for GDL was the subject of extensive consultation prior to that, in 2011. The outcome of that consultation informed the drafting of the Assembly Bill. The passage of the Bill entailed a series of Assembly debates, as well as close engagement with the departmental scrutiny Committee to explain the rationale and facilitate the Committee's clause-by-clause scrutiny of the Bill. The necessary subordinate legislation was also consulted on in 2017. As I mentioned, in my appearance at the Committee in June 2025, I confirmed my commitment to implementing GDL as soon as was practicable. It is important to say that the passage of time is largely beyond our control. It has taken some time to develop it, as we have had two Assembly collapses in that period, as well as COVID and other issues that took priority. The legislation has been in place for some time, and I am just moving on to the next stage of implementation.

I just explained to Mr Stewart the reasons for some of the delays. As has been stated, this is a huge reform of driver licensing and testing, so significant work was required to bring it to this point. The reform was initiated by my predecessor, John O'Dowd, on the back of the primary legislation, and I have now set the launch date, but there are stages to go through with the Committee on the subordinate legislation. We are trying to get it in place as quickly as possible. The evidence is there: we know that this is a positive step forward that will save lives. The positive feedback that we have received from parents and organisations, as well as from Road Safe NI, is that it is a positive step. It shows what we can do as an Assembly.

I thank the Member for his question. He cited some of the statistics on fatalities that show how young people are impacted. We were particularly cognisant of the impact on rural communities, where people are more reliant on access to a private car. I feel that the impact on rural communities will be positive, as evidenced by existing research that shows that GDL schemes reduce collisions involving young people. In 2024, 71% of the people killed or seriously injured in collisions involving a driver aged 17 to 23 were killed or injured on rural roads. Rural communities are severely affected by tragic loss and other consequences associated with serious road traffic collisions. We recognise the unique challenges that many rural drivers face. The system has been designed to minimise inconvenience while prioritising safety.

474 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:21 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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