Aisling Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)

Moving on to the school bus transport scheme, this is critical and crucial for many parents and guardians. Gone are the days, rightly or wrongly, of mammy having to drive five minutes or 15 minutes to get the bus. A lot of us rely on that bus to get the kids to school. I think we are finding out too late when the routes are agreed, who is getting the concessionary tickets, who is on the pilot scheme, and the new routes themselves.

Is anything being done in that area? The transport review has been complete for a long time with only some of its recommendations implemented. One of the big issues for the scheme is the availability of bus drivers. It was raised again today in the Dáil. I have raised the issue of the age of drivers being a factor in them not being allowed to drive school buses. Everyone, including the Taoiseach, has said people should be allowed drive buses over the age of 70 if medically certified on a annual basis. I want to ask the Minister about that.