Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am interested that the association is developing a driver apprenticeship programme. What is the timeline for the introduction of the programme and will Ms Murphy elaborate further on the course?

I wish I could give the Deputy a timeline. Unfortunately our programme is a very intense programme. It is three years long. It is provided and developed by the sectoral needs. It covers every form of transport. We have engaged with the RSA and the HSA. The RSA through the NDLS has asked us to incorporate emergency response driving, which we are in the throes of doing. This programme encompasses everything one could think of regarding haulage, including hauling cattle, milk, petroleum and meat. Every form of haulage is incorporated in our programme and it will certainly make for safer, more professional drivers.

The current standard of driver undergoes probably 20 weeks training. A person entering one of the current FÁS courses can have a professional HGV within 16 weeks. However, that same driver in a truck that caries carcass beef - a swinging moveable load - knows nothing about keeping that load stable while going around a roundabout. Our experience is that these courses do not provide HGV drivers. We are being told that 174,000 people are on the dole, but none of them appears to have HGV licences. It is very frustrating for us that we are under such pressure with our employment sector but cannot get the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to give us non-EU HGV driver permits. There are drivers in other jurisdictions who drive on the same side of the road with the same language skill and yet we have a driver apprenticeship programme that we know will not turn out a driver until 2020 if it gets under way in September. However, it is essential to the survival of the industry that that apprenticeship programme starts sooner rather than later.