European Communities (Merchandise Road Transport) Regulations, 1981.
Statutory Instruments
Source: Statutory Instruments

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paragraphs: (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Merchandise Road Transport) Regulations, 1981.
(2) The Principal Regulations and these Regulations may be cited together as the European Communities (Merchandise Road Transport) Regulations, 1977 and 1981.
(3) The Principal Regulations and these Regulations shall be construed together as one.
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paragraphs: In these Regulations —
“the Council Directive of 1977” means Council Directive No. 77/796/EEC of 12 December, 1977;
“the Principal Regulations” means the European Communities (Merchandise Road Transport) Regulations, 1977 ( S.I. No. 386 of 1977 ).
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paragraphs: A document purporting to be a certificate signed by an officer of the Minister and to certify that on a specified day, or on specified days or during the whole of a specified period, a specified person was not the holder of a current road freight certificate shall, without proof of the signature of the person purporting to sign the certificate or that he was an officer of the Minister and until the contrary is proved, be evidence of the matters stated in the certificate.
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paragraphs: (1) Where a mechanically propelled vehicle is about to be used for the carriage of goods by a person engaged in the occupation of road haulage operator, the person so engaged shall deliver to the person who is to act as driver of the vehicle while it is being so used either the relevant road freight certificate (together with, in case such certificate is, by virtue of Regulation 6 of the Principal Regulations, no longer in force, a current certificate of renewal) or a copy of such certificate (or, where appropriate, a copy of each such certificate).
(2) A person who fails to comply with the requirements of this Regulation shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding £50.
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paragraphs: (1) Any member of the Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na may demand of any person, driving a mechanically propelled vehicle which is being used in the carriage of goods in relation to which the restrictions imposed by Regulation 3(1) of the Principal Regulations apply, the production of the relevant road freight certificate (together with, in case such certificate is, by virtue of Regulation 6 of the Principal Regulations, no longer in force, a current certificate of renewal) or, a copy of such certificate (or, where appropriate, a copy of each such certificate), and if that person refuses or fails to produce such certificate, certificates, copy or copies, as may be appropriate, there and then, or though producing such document or documents, refuses or fails to permit such member to read it or them, that person shall, unless within ten days after the date on which the production was demanded he produces such document or documents in person to a member of the Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na at a Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na station to be named by such person at the time the production is demanded, be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding £50.
(2) Where a person of whom the production of a document or documents is demanded under this Regulation refuses to produce such document or documents or produces the document or documents but refuses or fails to permit a member of the Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na making the demand to read the document or documents, or where a person produces such document or documents at a Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na station in accordance with paragraph (1) of this Regulation but refuses to allow the member of the Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na to whom the document or documents is produced to read it or them, the member may demand of such person his name and address and if such person refuses or fails to give his name and address, or gives a name or address which is false or misleading, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding £50.
(3) A person who, when producing a document to a member of the Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na pursuant to this Regulation, permits the member to see so much of the document as contains the name and address of the person to whom the document was granted and the date of the termination of the period in relation to which it was granted shall for the purposes of these Regulations be regarded as having permitted such member to read the certificate or copy.
(4) (a) In proceedings for an offence under this Regulation, it shall be presumed, until the contrary is shown by the defendant, that he produced in person, within ten days after the day on which the production was demanded, neither a document nor documents, as may be appropriate in the particular case, in accordance with paragraph (1) of this Regulation.
(b) Where in proceedings for an offence under this Regulation it is proved that a member of the Garda SÃ­ochÃ¡na demanded of the defendant the production of a road freight certificate, that at the time of the alleged offence the defendant was driving a mechanically propelled vehicle and that the vehicle was being used for the carriage of goods not the property of the owner of the vehicle, then, unless there is sufficient other evidence to raise an issue as to whether the vehicle was being used in the carriage of goods in relation to which the restrictions imposed by Regulation 3(1) of the Principal Regulations apply, the defendant shall be regarded as having driven the vehicle while it was being used in the carriage of goods in relation to which the said restrictions apply.
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paragraphs: The Principal Regulations are hereby amended by —
(a) as regards Regulation 3(2)—
(i) the insertion of the following new subparagraph after subparagraph (b):
“(bb) the carriage is within the State and occurs during the period beginning on the 1st day of August and ending on the 30th day of November in any year and is confined to the carriage of newly harvested wheat, oats or barley from a farm to a place of storage, assembly or processing,”, and
(ii) the substitution of “a person who is a person of the description contained in section 7 (1)(a) of the Road Transport Act, 1935 (No. 23 of 1935), and the goods being carried (if any) are being carried into or out of the State” for “means of a lorry or tractor which complies with the conditions specified in section 7 (1) of the Road Transport Act, 1935 (No. 23 of 1935), as amended by section 29 of the Transport Act, 1958 (No. 19 of 1958), and which is used in the course of international transport” in subparagraph (d), and the said subparagraph (d) as so amended, is set out in paragraph 1 of the Table to this Regulation;
(b) the substitution of “paragraph (2) (a)” for “paragraph (2) (b)” in paragraph (3) of Regulation 3, and the said paragraph (3), as so amended, is set out in paragraph 2 of the Table to this Regulation;
(c) the insertion of “a restricted road freight licence to a person who is not a person of the description contained in section 7 (1) (a) of the Road Transport Act, 1935 , or the grant” before “or renewal” in paragraph (1) of Regulation 4, and the said paragraph (1), as so amended, is set out in paragraph 3 of the Table to this Regulation;
(d) the substitution of the following for paragraph (2) of Regulation 4;
“(2) The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Regulation are in addition to and not in substitution for section 8 of the Road Transport Act, 1971 (No. 8 of 1971), or any requirement of the Act or any regulations made under the Act which is for the time being in force, being a requirement which relates to the grant or renewal of merchandise licences or the grant of a restricted road freight licence.”;
(e) the substitution of the following for paragraph (11) of Regulation 5;
“(11) On the application for the grant or renewal of a road freight certificate, the Minister shall in considering whether or not a person satisfies the requirements of provision (a), take into account any conviction of which particulars are by these Regulations required to be given by the applicant.”;
(f) the substitution of the following for subparagraph (d) of Regulation 5(17):
“(d) any offence under these Regulations,
(e) any offence under a law in force in a Member State of the European Communities, other than the State, and which corresponds to any of the foregoing offences.”;
(g) The addition to Regulation 5 of the following paragraph:
“(18) The references in paragraph (7) (b) of this Regulation to a national certificate of competence and an international certificate of competence shall be construed as including a reference to any document which is issued for the purposes of the Council Directive outside the State by the competent authority in a Member State of the European Communities in accordance with Council Directive No. 77/796/EEC of 12 December, 1977, and corresponds to a national certificate of competence or, as may be appropriate, an international certificate of competence.”;
and
(h) the substitution of “physically or legally incapable” for “incapable through ill health” where it firstly occurs and of “dies or becomes physically or legally incapable” for “becomes incapable through ill health” where it secondly occurs in paragraph (1) of Regulation 8, and the said paragraph (1), as so amended, is set out in paragraph 4 of the Table to this Regulation.
TABLE
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paragraphs: The carriage is by a person who is a person of the description contained in section 7 (1) (a) of the Road Transport Act, 1935 (No. 23 of 1935), and the goods being carried (if any) are being carried into or out of the State.
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paragraphs: For the purposes of paragraph (2) (a) of this Regulation, 2.5 metric tons unladen weight shall be deemed to be equivalent to 6 metric tons permissible maximum total laden weight.
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paragraphs: Where on or after the 1st day of January, 1978, an application is made to the Minister for the grant of a restricted road freight licence to a person who is not a person of the description contained in section 7 (1) (a) of the Road Transport Act, 1935 or the grant or renewal of a merchandise licence, the Minister shall only allow the application if the applicant is the holder of a road freight certificate which is for the time being in force.
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paragraphs: Where the holder of a road freight certificate dies or becomes physically or legally incapable of carrying on or managing the relevant merchandise road transport business, or where a person designated in pursuance of Regulation 5 of these Regulations dies or becomes physically or legally incapable of carrying on or managing such business, the Minister may, if he is satisfied that it is necessary in order to avoid hardship, grant a permission under this Regulation on an application being made to him in that behalf by or on behalf of such holder or person or the personal representative of such holder or person.
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paragraphs: Subparagraphs (a) and (b) of Regulation 13(5) of the Principal Regulations are hereby revoked.