Mr. Billy Hann:

I thank the Deputy for his questions. I will make a point on the cost of living and whether it is an impediment to encouraging people to join Dublin Bus. In November 2022, we had 75 applicants on our system to become bus drivers. In around April of this year, we got that figure up to nearly 1,500 applicants, which was strong after the campaign we had. Therefore, it is not necessarily a large impediment. We are losing some staff, however, as are other organisations. In some of the exit interviews, workers will cite the cost of living in Dublin as being a problem for them. Some have moved down the country to work somewhere else where the cost of living may be a little bit cheaper. It is not a significant issue for us but it is a problem.

The issue of mechanics is a problem. There are no mechanics to be got out there. I have opinions on that, which I will not go into, but we have lost a generation of tradespeople in this country for various reasons that we do not have time to talk about.