LEO Varadkar has revealed that his grandfather’s death in a traffic accident inspired him to introduce tough road safety laws as a legislator.
The former taoiseach recalled how his grandfather, Tom Howell, was killed at age 82 as a passenger in a fatal road traffic incident.
Varadkar was a junior doctor in Navan at the time of the tragedy in Co Carlow in 2005.
But Leo has now told how the heartbreaking loss encouraged him to introduce a batch of road safety legislation when he became transport minister in 2011 and later taoiseach.
Opening up on the tragedy, Varadkar said: “My uncle was driving from Dublin to Dungarvan where they lived.
“On the Carlow Road there was a loose horse.
“It hit the windscreen of the car. My uncle had minor injuries, but my grandfather didn’t survive.”
The former Fine Gael leader admitted that his drive to improve road safety through legislation was also influenced by the grim reality of working in hospitals and emergency departments as a doctor.
Leo spoke of treating victims of fatal accidents and those who suffered life-changing injuries.
And he said: “The truth is there are a huge number of families in Ireland who lost somebody on the road, or who had life-changing injuries.
“I know it’s not comparable but many, many more people have died on our roads in Ireland than died in the Troubles, for example.”
The former Dublin West TD opened up on his family loss at a road safety event in Salthill, Co Galway, on Friday.
It was organised by road safety group Parc to welcome a new law that comes into force on Monday, requiring motorists to supply their unique driver licence number to their insurer.
Leo lauded the new law aimed at keeping disqualified drivers off roads.
SAFETY MOVE
He explained: “It means people who are disqualified from driving won’t be able to get insurance.
“Unfortunately, what’s happening now is some people who are disqualified from driving in Ireland are back driving the next week because the insurance companies and gardai don’t know they’ve been disqualified from driving.”
Road safety campaigner Susan Gray, who founded Parc after her husband Steve was killed in a road crash in Donegal in 2004, hailed Leo for progressing the new law as taoiseach.
But inadequate ICT systems means not all of the new legislation can be enacted on Monday.
Parc is calling on the current Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien and Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan to set a deadline for its full implementation.
