Mr. Gerard Macken:

The Taxi Alliance of Ireland represents 22 groups throughout the country. I am here with the team from the National Private Hire and Taxi Association and the Irish Taxi Drivers Federation. Some of our main concerns include the advantage taken by companies particularly with regard to Dublin Airport through the Covid-19 pandemic. They say they are not going to deal with representatives and they have cut all negotiations. In essence, they are taking us from the rule books in respect of Dublin Airport, which is very concerning.

The NTA has not looked for guidelines from taxi representative groups. We have had very little correspondence from the taxi advisory committee. There has been no implementation for taxi drivers going back to work with regard to screens or otherwise. We have not been made a part of the mandatory wearing of face masks in public transport. The statutory instrument does not cover taxis, which is very poor in that regard. We will look for the NTA to provide stimulus throughout the country through HSE work, school transport and the rural link. We had very positive meetings with Ms Anne Graham, Mr. Hugh Creegan and Ms Margaret Malone on rural transport. They came back to us with a stimulus to activate rural transport with rural hackneys but we said that taxis are needed in that area as well.

Now is the time to bring taxis under the remit of the NTA because it seems that during the entire crisis we have been cannon fodder. The authority says we are front-line workers but has given us no remit for any guidelines in that regard.

There was a very simple task that could have been done by the NTA if it had proper representation on the taxi advisory committee. The taxi advisory committee has not given us any indication as to what is happening. It has become like a secret society in respect of the taxi industry with one representative on it. There were poor actions by Mr. Shane Ross at the beginning of this pandemic relating to the industry. I think he only met taxi groups three or four times during his term. We ask the new Minister with responsibility for transport to take some time and listen to what the taxi representative groups have done and to start a new advisory group including those groups where they get proper information from proper individuals, not second-hand information coming from people outside the industry. No industry should have a majority of people from companies giving advice. Advice should be coming from people on the ground. We ask for the disbandment of the current taxi advisory committee and the appointment of a new committee where the majority of taxi drivers' voices throughout the country can be heard.

I refer to the decimation in rural areas and towns across Ireland. They need stimulus. They rely on tourism for growth. There will be no tourism with current growth. Individuals will drive from their houses to hotels and use their own cars to do that. The stimulus for taxi drivers in that scenario is non-existent. There has to be a grant or some sort of system to allow taxi drivers to go back to work.

I welcome questions.