Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. That €100 million for private bus operators and Local Link is managed by the National Transport Authority, NTA, and applications to access that funding happen through the agency. It is identifying the gaps in service as a result of the cessation of the Expressway service. That work is ongoing and falls under the remit of the NTA.

The Deputy also raised the issue of driving tests. Eight driving tests were carried out per day before the onset of the pandemic and five tests per day are currently being carried out. In March, during complete lockdown, zero tests were being carried out and, as we opened up, five tests per day were being carried out because of issues around having to sanitise the test centres, minimising the numbers of people attending and ensuring the sanitisation of the cars into which testers were sitting. Essential services will be prioritised. If people have a driving test already and know that they can proceed, I ask them to proceed with the test. It is an essential service. Anyone who is an essential worker, and outlines who qualifies as an essential worker, for example healthcare workers, can contact urgentdrivingtest@rsa.ie.

To answer the Deputy's question, there is a large backlog in testing and it is of concern. People are not able to access tests. We have been grappling with this and trying to rehire temporary testers who were laid off during the initial lockdown. Another cohort whose employment was due to cease this month and next month will be kept on. We are increasing the number of testers. I suppose the fundamental issue is the amount of testers that we can have within the centre at one time and the amount of people who are looking for a test that can attend. It is a matter of balancing the health protocol and the backlog. At the same time, we are looking at procuring further testers to come on board over the next few months. It is an issue of concern for people. I say again that essential workers can contact urgentdrivingtest@rsa.iefor priority.