The Government is to consider tougher measures against young drivers in a bid to cut road deaths.
Seven people, including a pedestrian, have been killed on the State's roads since Friday evening. Six of them have been aged 25 or under.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern
A total of 304 people have been killed on the roads since January 1st, exceeding the target of 300 per annum by the end of this year, which was set by the Government in 2004 in its road safety plan.
Gardaí said today they would continue to "prioritise" road safety enforcement. The Garda Press Office revealed today the force had made a total of 456 arrests for drink driving between Monday October 16th and yesterday.
The week before, there were 411 such arrests and more than 500 the week before that. Mandatory breath testing for alcohol was introduced in August.
The Road Safety Authority (RSA) said it has submitted confidential proposals to Minister for Transport Martin Cullen on the issue.
The measures are believed to recommend lowering the threshold of disqualification from 12 to six penalty points and fitting speed-limiting devices to cars.
Speaking this morning, RSA chief executive Noel Brett encouraged parents to ensure their children had taken adequate driving instruction before getting behind the wheel.
"Many parents will have spent more money on Irish dancing lessons or music lessons yet they're prepared to give a highly powered and dangerous vehicle to somebody with little or no tuition," he told RTÉ's Morning Ireland.
"Driving is one of the most dangerous types of things you can do. We're really urging people to please go and get appropriate tuition. We're urging parents to make the hard decision and say 'no you can't have that vehicle until I'm satisfied that I know what you're doing, where you're going and that you're able to use it.'"
Speaking on Today with Pat Kenny, Mr Cullen said he favoured a total overhaul of driver training and licencing with increased restrictions on newly-qualified drivers.
"We need to change the regime entirely. I think there needs to be a graduated licencing approach in Ireland, that is very restrictive in terms of getting your first licence," said Mr Cullen.
"I think we do away, and I've prepared for this in the legislation, with the provisional licence to a learner driver situation akin to what happens in other countries."
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern also called for heavier penalties on young drivers who speed. "It's not, I think, acceptable that there are still people taking to the roads in high-speed vehicles and doing merciless speeds," he said this morning.
"Wherever they can be punished, whether it is the gardaí's action or the court's action or legal action . . . all of these things must work together."