Byrne: Brett hamstrung by red tape

Gay Byrne has claimed that former Road Safety Authority chief executive Noel Brett left the post because he was “hamstrung” from getting things done because of negativity and the “civil service process” — as well as the pay cuts he endured in recent years.

Mr Brett’s departure from the job last Friday came as the country is on course for the worst road death figures since 2010.

Mr Byrne said the Road Safety Authority staff were heartbroken that Mr Brett was gone.

“He is an outstanding public servant, but he finally got fed up with the whole civil service process and the negativity and the slowness of doing things and getting things done and he is fed up with all the reductions in his salary and this percent and that percent like everybody else and he was offered a great deal more money and he has gone to do a job which he thinks will probably be easier.”

Mr Byrne, who is chairman of RSA, said his former colleague had spearheaded the organisation from the start.

“We had an agreement he would be the frontman for the Road Safety Authority,” he said.

“I was wheeled out on special occasions here and there but he was dealing with it 24/7 and it was a never-ending job — on call all the time. He did it superbly.”

Mr Byrne told Today FM’s Ray D’Arcy Show that this year he felt like he was watching the unravelling of all the progress made by the Irish public in addressing road safety over the last five to six years.

“We are 18 up on fatalities over this time last year. It looks like we will be over 200 by the end of the year compared to 162 last year, which was admittedly the best year ever,” he said.

The former Late Late Show presenter also made reference to Justice Minister Alan Shatter “telling him off”.

“We are continuing with the first ‘e’ which is education; we are continuing with the second ‘e’ which is engineering; but the enforcement is entirely the job of the cops,” he said.