Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will ask Mr. Fulham, Ms Kennedy and Ms Tinsley to give their concluding remarks. Ms Murphy had to leave the meeting. She told us previously her time was limited. In terms of what we can do practically, the witnesses are very familiar with the legislation. For us, as a committee, we were, to say the least, dissatisfied the legislation did not cover e-scooters. A lot of it will only come to the fore when the legislation is published. We will only get down to business when it comes to Committee Stage. There is a window of opportunity between now and Committee Stage. There must be serious active engagement between the Department of Transport, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, and the organisations represented by the witnesses. There is no substitute for accounts of personal experiences.

All the witnesses have practical stories to tell. We could not understand what they are going through. At the end of the day, it has a significant practical impact on their daily lives. Obviously, anything to do with active travel is to be welcomed, but if we are to bring in e-scooters we must get it right. Mr. Fulham referred to best practice. Best practice must be underpinned by robust legislation.

What we will do as a committee is consider the witnesses submissions again. In essence, we will be writing to, and are sending out a strong message today, the Department of Transport and the Ministers to meet with your good selves immediately. We will go through how we can get this right in terms of footpaths, speeds and general safety. We cannot have a situation whereby people who are visually impaired, on their own or with a guide dog, or people who are disabled feel threatened as a result of a measure that has been introduced that should be a positive measure. The witnesses' submission was sent to the Department in early November. On foot of our meeting today, perhaps the witnesses will collectively come together to see if there are further updates they can make to their submission. That should then be sent to us. It should also be sent to the Department. We will look to ensure that they get a meeting with immediate effect. This matter is too important.

We thank the witnesses for coming to this very important meeting. Starting with Mr. Fulham, then Ms Kennedy and Ms Tinsley, I ask them to provide their concluding remarks and, if they would like, to add to what I have just said. We also thank Ms Murphy for her meaningful contribution.