Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)

——and, indeed, in rural areas. The High Court decision reversed that trend. The belief now, particularly among taxi drivers, is that there are too many licences, but the law is as it currently stands. With the introduction of improved standards by the taxi regulator, many of the concerns currently being expressed can be met.

Deputy Stanton referred to the introduction of a pilot scheme. The discussions I mentioned at the outset relate to that matter. There was extensive discussion by the Commission on Taxi Regulation. In the course of the committee's hearings on public transport accessibility, which reviewed the disability plan, a view was expressed that the commitment in the programme for Government to making wheelchair accessible taxis widely available was not deemed to be an absolute necessity. It is on that basis, therefore, that we will talk to the taxi regulator again to see if we can produce some sort of scheme that is not as widespread as originally envisaged.

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