Mr. David McGuinness:

At the beginning of the pandemic, we sought an extension for all vehicles because of the cost, and we do so again now. Our costs were not taken away during the pandemic. They were consistent. We still had to pay loans and insurance on vehicles that were not working. Between the four groups sitting in the room, we proposed that a five-year extension would be added to the ten-year rule so as to allow us to come out the other side of the pandemic. The issues faced by taxi drivers were not resolved the day the country opened up again. The issues that we faced over the previous three years are still there. It is hard for drivers to get loans to accompany the grants because most of us received the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, which banks, credit unions and financial organisations do not consider as earned income. Even securing a loan over the next two years until we rebuild our personal finances will be hard. The NTA and the Department of Transport should make a decision quickly on the extension of the ten-year rule.