"We have put on overtime staff to deal with this emergency situation.

If someone has established a priority situation they will be able to sit the test within a couple of weeks.

People who need their cars for their job, or who are disabled or elderly and rely on them will be considered a priority, " Byrne told the Sunday Tribune.

RSA staff are working overtime this bank holiday weekend to deal with the "mad hysteria" caused by last week's confusion about the likely impact of the new regulations on drivers with provisional licences.

"We are doing this to allay people's fears. It's a warning for people on their second provisional to 'get your affairs in order'. The 120,000 second provisional licence holders have so far either not bothered to do the test or done it and failed. There is no convenient time to introduce this measure, " he added. The RSA received 300 calls an hour on Friday from people enquiring about sitting the test.

From Tuesday 120,000 drivers on their second provisional licence will receive warnings and cautions for driving without a fully licensed driver but should avoid prosecution as gardai will take a "common sense" approach to implementing the regulations for two or three months, according to transport minister Noel Dempsey.

Labour party leader Eamon Gilmore yesterday called on the transport minister to defer his licensing plan for six months. He described the plan as a "shambles" and claimed the minister's action had undermined the new road safety strategy.

"It is simply not good enough for minister Dempsey to say, 'Well, the law won't be fully applied for three months.' He cannot give a guarantee that individual gardai will not apply the law rigidly from Tuesday, " he said.

Dempsey is expected to attend one of the first meetings of the new Oireachtas transport committee next month, when he will face intense questioning about the Aer Lingus-Shannon debacle and the license controversy.

His political difficulties may increase further as Fine Gael is understood to have discussed the possibility of tabling a motion of no confidence in the beleaguered minister. "We are not far from that territory, " one party source said.