Mark Duffy (Fine Gael)

I welcome Mr. Hyland, Mr. Nolan, Mr. Drennan, Mr. McArdle and Mr. Jackman. I am from County Mayo. I have a few questions. I acknowledge what has been raised regarding the challenges facing the association. I have spoken with hauliers over the past number of days in Mayo, who reflected to me the different challenges they face, which certainly align with what was raised here.

Tolls in Northern Ireland are totally unacceptable, considering the fact the State is supporting initiatives like the A5 in Northern Ireland. It is only fair, in the case of the mini-tariff placed on hauliers, that we either reciprocate it and use it as a rebate for our own hauliers in the Republic or, as a more constructive measure, the committee could write to the Minister for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland, who has responsibility for transport, reflecting the view of the committee that the mini-tariff should be waived. We want to work on an all-island basis, but considering the fact of the charge of more than £10 on a 40 tonne vehicle, on-the-spot fines are total overkill and do nothing to support all-island efforts in an industry that has challenges. The second point we should include in that letter, if it is agreed, is that tachographs are set up for international and continental logistics as opposed to the all-island effort. We should include those two points when we write to the Minister. Let us hope that we get a favourable response, especially considering the fact, and the point was well made, of our investment in Northern Ireland.

One point that was made to me, which has also been made here but I would like Mr. Hyland's further thoughts on it, relates to a regulator for the industry. Is that something he would welcome? Would it be specifically for fuel? He mentioned safe fares more generally, so there is clarity for the industry, and zones, similar to the way it is in the taxi industry. Is that something that would be welcome or is it being considered?

As I said, I am from County Mayo. There is frustration at times for many of the hauliers there. They feel like they are being persecuted because they do not have a motorway and the roadside stops are overkill. They are just trying to do their job and do something that is the lifeline of all of the economy. The haulage sector underpins the economy. We need to acknowledge, appreciate and support it. There needs to be strong regulation for safety measures of course, but we do not need to be overbearing in that. We need to support our drivers and the sector. We recently spoke about how the north west has one of the weakest transport infrastructure systems in the European regions. Out of approximately 230 regions, the north-west region is sixth from the bottom. On that point, we do not have adequate infrastructure or motorway infrastructure into Mayo and, on the double, we then have hauliers who are being negatively impacted because there obviously cannot be roadside stops on motorways as there are on national roads. I would welcome Mr. Hyland's thoughts on those points in particular.

Could we also write a second letter to the Minister for justice regarding visas? This is a huge issue and contact with all relevant Ministries linked into this bureaucratic difficulty and challenge that is really obstructing the growth of the sector should be considered. Something we could perhaps do is write a letter to the Minister, and relevant authorities, to make sure that we have a joined-up approach and a streamlined effort. I spoke to hauliers in the sector who have to advertise every time to demonstrate there is a need, but there needs to be an overall acknowledgement nationally that there is currently a huge demand and need. There should be more flexibility on that. Those are my points. I would welcome any thoughts from Mr. Hyland on them.