Mr. Eugene Drennan:

I thank members for the opportunity to appear before the committee. I am president of the Irish Road Haulage Association, IRHA. It is no exaggeration for me to state that the licensed road haulage sector is in a serious existential crisis at present. The ever-increasing hikes in fuel costs have been hitting our sector for many months now and are coming on top of operating conditions that are already extremely challenging. Brexit, driver shortages and Covid-19 constraints on operations have built up a perfect storm for our members, their colleagues and families. The ever-increasing costs of running a licensed haulage business are forcing people out of the sector and forcing some members to park up their trucks. The sector is fiercely competitive and members are finding limited opportunities to recover increased costs from their customers. Members are also facing huge uncertainty about the future, given the ongoing dependence on diesel-powered vehicles for the medium term, with a Government that flatly refuses to recognise this reality. The Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, seems to want to wish away diesel from our economy by imposing penal taxes on the essential fuel used for heavy goods vehicles, HGVs, but has not presented any realistic alternatives to our members.

It is vital to fully understand the important role that licensed haulage plays in our economy and society. Licensed hauliers are literally the wheels that keep the economy moving. Our members bring goods to and from Ireland and play an important role in the distribution of goods and the supply chain, ensuring that homes, businesses and essential services are able to function effectively. Any loss in the effective functioning of our national haulage fleet will directly impact on many areas of our economy. Therefore, it is disheartening to hear about well-established and long-standing licensed hauliers who are getting out of the business or downsizing their operations. Given the high-cost operating environment and the uncertain future, they cannot make their business pay for them.

We have made strong representations to the Government about the high cost of fuel. We welcome the recent announcement of an interim relief scheme to licensed hauliers to meet extra fuel costs. This payment was around an additive, AdBlue, and sought to ease the burden of high prices. The payment of €100 per week for each HGV on the road for an eight-week period will assist the sector in the short term but it is very much only a stop-gap measure. We also met the Minister for Finance and put different scenarios to him, and we subsequently got the 15 cent decrease, which is very welcome and which I acknowledge. However, sticking-plaster solutions only push the problem down the road and provide no assurance to licensed hauliers that the Government gets the problem and is prepared to address the matter comprehensively.

In order to address high fuel prices and other operating costs for our sector, the Government needs to give sufficient fuel rebates to licensed hauliers as essential users of diesel. We have argued with the Government that the current diesel rebate scheme needs to be recalibrated to ensure it is an effective support for a key sector of the economy. We have indicated to the Government the levels of change required in the existing diesel rebate scheme but there is no indication that the Government will move on this issue. The blind opposition to fossil fuel subsidies is preventing the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, from looking at reconfiguring the scheme to a more workable alternative which can also help to reduce costs and emissions.

We need to implement the significant fuel saving measures which we have presented to the Government as a means of reducing fuel consumption. These are very simple initiatives that could make a significant difference to the amount of fuel used, such as altering traffic light sequences in urban areas, creating a toll-free channel for HGVs at toll booths and changing the operating hours for depots at ports. Each of these initiatives would help to reduce fuel consumption, reduce costs and reduce emissions. We need to support the transition of the national HGV fleet to more fuel-efficient options. This is a no-brainer but, regrettably, we are running up against a brick wall on this issue.

There is no acceptance in government of the stark reality that diesel will remain the key transmission source for licensed hauliers operating HGVs out to the medium term. There is no substitute fuel source available to the sector at present and no indication of one emerging in the medium term. The Government needs to remove the doctrinal objection to diesel as a fossil fuel and instead change the focus to securing the lowest emissions possible and the highest fuel efficiency from diesel vehicles. Modern fuel technologies mean that HGVs can now use diesel and achieve the lowest possible emission levels for CO2, NOx and SOx, as well as achieving high levels of fuel efficiency.

The Irish Road Haulage Association would warmly welcome it if this committee could act as an interlocutor on the issue of fuel costs and the future of this vital sector. All too often, we are told that specific measures cannot be taken because of potential objections at EU level. Yet, when we examine matters directly in Brussels and look at measures adopted in other member states, we find that Irish Government objections do not stand up.

There is nothing at EU level stopping the Irish Government from introducing a new diesel rebate scheme that acknowledges our sector as essential users of diesel. Similar schemes exist in Holland, Belgium, Spain, Italy and France. Such a scheme can also form part of initiatives to move the fleet to a low-carbon, low-emission and fuel-efficient future but this will require the Government accepting that diesel will be the fuel of necessity for our sector for at least the next ten years. Put simply, there is no viable alternative at present or coming from HGV manufacturers over the medium term.

It is also important to point out at this juncture the reason we are harping on so much about how we only have the choice of diesel. Even if other alternative fuels become available, we cannot leave the island on ferries because the other fuels are effectively a bomb going on the ferry. The channel tunnel recently totally stopped accepting gas in any proportion, or hydrogen if it should happen to be available. We cannot get to the markets other than with diesel.

Heads need to be banged together to come up with workable and practical suggestions and outcomes, which we presented to the Ministers, Deputies Donohoe and Eamon Ryan, recently, that can assist the sector while also meeting Government objectives on climate change. We can meet our targets if we are helped. Workable and practical outcomes can be achieved to avert the current crisis and bring this sector to a sustainable and viable future. These measures can tackle high fuel costs for our members as essential users of diesel and can support the transition of the sector to a low-carbon future.

I thank the Chairman. That concludes our opening statement.