Noel Rock (Dublin North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his statement. It is clear that both he and his Department have given this issue thorough thought. I welcome what he has said about it and that he is putting the operators and drivers on notice. It is clear that he is close to making a decision and I appreciate him consulting us, particularly Deputy Imelda Munster who proposed the legislation. In politics people might forgive the making of a wrong decision, but they will not forgive not making a decision. It is incumbent, therefore, on the Minister and the Department to make a decision on this matter which has been ongoing for quite a few years. Rickshaws pose a danger to the public. It is clear from the National Transport Authority survey, in which 57% of people said they had been involved in either an accident or a near miss, that rickshaws are a danger to the public. If this statistic was related to any other mode or means of public transport, for example, taxis, we would have representatives of all of the taxi associations before us in the morning. The figure of 57% for persons who were involved in an accident or a near misses cannot be understated in any way. The issue is incredibly serious and it does not even start to take into account the issues exposed by Conor Lally in The Irish Timesand the RTÉ investigations and exposés about the widespread dealing of drugs from these vehicles. It is clear to me and the public that something needs to be done about it. Some 4,800 responses to the public consultation process is a remarkable number. On the breakdown of the data, in his submissin the Minister gives one subcategory - that 54% favour an outright ban, whereas only 38% favour some form of regulation. That gives a total figure of 92%. I presume the remaining 8% favoured retaining the status quo. Is that right?