Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

The Deputy makes the point for me. I am simply saying my preference is that any bus used to carry children for whatever reason should have safety belts on it. We are all agreed on that. I laid out for the House what procedures I have to go through under EU law to get to that point. I point out that there are huge operational implications for the industry if we do this. I am minded to do it but I know the outcome will be to put all the small bus operators out of business. That is the reason the EU did not go down the road of retrofitting all the vehicles in Europe. It is as simple as that. I am minded to find a methodology for those who have a requirement for a coach to transport children to ensure they have a coach with safety belts fitted. By the end of this year not only a huge portion of the fleet in Bus Éireann but a huge portion of the fleet in the private sector, albeit contracted for specific work, will be on hire for a range of other work. I say to clubs, parents, groups and everybody that if they are hiring a coach for the movement of children they should stipulate they want a coach with safety belts. By the end of this year there will be a large pool of those coach fleets available.

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