The Minister of State for Justice, Mr Frank Fahey, has acknowledged that his driver, fined for speeding in his official car in 2002, was fined again last week for speeding.
A spokeswoman for Mr Fahey said last night that the previous fine was imposed "about two years ago" and that the driver "was driving Minister Fahey at the time". She gave no further information about the 2002 incident besides indicating that it was the driver's only previous speeding fine.
Mr Fahey said on RTÉ radio yesterday that his driver normally adhered to the rules of the road but said he had to admit that there had been times when they broke the speed limit.
"But I can assure you it won't happen again," he said. "It wouldn't be often."
Mr Fahey acknowledged his embarrassment over the incident last week in which his driver was stopped by gardaí for driving at 79 m.p.h. in a 60 m.p.h. zone.
He said he had not known that the driver was breaking the speed limit until they were stopped late on Tuesday between Craughwell and Loughrea.
Mr Fahey said he had not spoken about the incident to the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell. "Obviously it's a mistake on our part and shouldn't have happened. And it is an embarrassment and I'm sorry for it," he said.
Separately, a community leader in Co Kerry called for a 40 m.p.h. speed limit on a road in which a State car carrying the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Mr Ó Cuív, crashed with a car rented by two tourists.
The chairman of the Muckross Community Association, Mr Liam Kelly, said a 40 m.p.h. limit rather than the existing 60 m.p.h. limit was needed on that road.
A spokeswoman for Mr Ó Cuív said he was certain that his driver was fully in compliance with the law while sources close to the Minister said he was "pretty certain" that his car was almost at a standstill when the crash occurred.