Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill, but I do not welcome the increases in it. The only bit of good news in it is the fact that there is no increase for electric vehicles. I welcome the idea of electric vehicles. They have a major role to play in the towns and cities of our country. When the Minister launched it he said it was possible to use it on a trip to Galway or elsewhere. Many cars are in use because of a lack of proper public transport. I think of all the cars one sees outside schools. In the past the huge four-wheel drives were often used for that purpose. If we could get the second person in the family to use an electric car for the short runs and city and town purposes, it would be a major cost-benefit to the family and reduce our CO2 emissions.

Ordinary motor tax has increased by 4%, tax for larger cars by 5% and commercial motor tax by 4%. The Minister pointed out that this increase will go to local government and this is necessary because local government funds are under severe pressure. In my constituency of Cavan-Monaghan commercial businesses and workplaces are under enormous pressure. As the Minister has already sent word to county councils, they should seriously examine their ratings procedures. Without apology I suggest that it is a year for zero rate increases. Otherwise councils will take in less money as more shops and industrial facilities are put out of business. A closed door means no rates. Common sense must be used.

Jobs are at risk. A small factory in my local town, Ballybay, uses a lot of water for its production purposes. However, because of the new structures, its bill has increased by over 100%. It now has to pay for water in and water out. A high quality cleansing system is used to treat the waste water. The water is drinkable as it leaves the premises but it cannot be reused in the system for technical reasons. An additional machine costing €250,000 would have to be installed to allow them to reuse the water in their system. The Government must seriously examine the provision of grant aid towards the installation of such a machine to minimise the use of water and to control the costs of the business if it is to remain viable.

I had the privilege of visiting Shabra Plastics in Castleblayney when a new wing of the factory was opened by the then Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Martin. The company has installed a unit that allows it to recycle the extraordinary volume of water used in its system. The company is, therefore, not buying water from the county council other than for use by the staff. Water on the roof of the factory is captured and it can be reused through the cleansing system. We must be conscious of this technology if businesses are to be sustained. The case of the small factory in Ballybay must be seriously considered by Government agencies in order to provide help because if it is to pay the water charges imposed on it in addition to water rates, 12 jobs will be at risk and could be lost, thus affecting 12 families and the council's revenue stream.

Previous speakers referred to road improvements in their constituencies. I acknowledge the major improvements to roads between Dublin and Monaghan town such as the M1 and N2. Carrickmacross, Castleblayney and Monaghan town have been bypassed in recent years and I pay tribute to the NRA personnel who made a commitment to us long ago that if we agreed to the bypassing of the three towns together, funding would be provided for all three. The Minister and the NRA delivered over a reasonably short period.

However, I am worried that when the previous Taoiseach finalised the St. Andrew's Agreement, he made a commitment on behalf of the Government to build a dual carriageway between Derry, which is the fourth largest city on the island, and Dublin via Monaghan, a route also used by many people in northern Donegal. I am delighted that officials are examining the route between Derry city and Aughnacloy and it is guaranteed that will be built as quickly as possible but the Minister for Transport dropped a bombshell at a recent committee meeting when he said officials were examining the option of building a single carriageway between the Border and Ardee, with the exception of the area around Castleblayney. The Minister must be honest about these proposals and the Government should carry through on what was promised in the St. Andrew's Agreement, which was a dual carriageway between Derry and Dublin. This is a major issue, which must be clarified.

When the Minister left the committee, officials from the NRA and the Department of the Environment in Northern Ireland suggested the project had to be re-examined. I ask that it be re-examined because it would be an anomaly to build a dual carriageway between Derry and the Border, connecting to a single carriageway and then a two and one carriageway between Clontibret and Castleblayney, which also needs to be examined. Many complications will arise and there will be serious accidents on the road unless slip roads and so on are amended. This project must be re-examined and clarified.

There are major problems with the M3 and the N3 in the other part of my constituency. Through no fault of the Government and the relevant Departments, there have been major hold ups with the development of the M3 but work is proceeding quickly. The problem in County Cavan, however, is the bypass of Virginia is no longer even being discussed while the bypass of Belturbet, where many fatalities have occurred, is still on hold. We were promised a number of years ago that this bypass was a priority but the last letter I received from the NRA recently suggested otherwise. These issues need to be addressed, regardless of the recessionary times we are in. If we are to attract industry to the regions, roads similar to the N2 will provide a benefit. Proper broadband services are also needed.

The Minister referred to the need for more localised revenue raising and expenditure and the introduction of charges for non-principal private residences. Is that the introduction of rates through the back door? I have no major hang up about the tax on second homes but the problem is counties such as Monaghan and Cavan do not have massive numbers of holiday homes like counties Donegal, Wexford and Kerry. I am not as sure as other Members that I would like the revenue generated from taxes on holiday homes to be spent in those areas. There is a justification for it to be spread around.

I refer to the motor tax issue. Many of my constituents consciously bought an environmentally friendly car with low emissions but they find themselves in a unique position. Two neighbours living beside each other have the same car, the only difference being one could afford a new car and the other car is a few years old. The person who was wealthy enough to buy a new car gets away with €150 in motor tax whereas his neighbour who has lost his job and has major difficulty meeting his bills must pay three times as much. The Green Party Ministers claim to be conscious of the problems faced by different people. Where a person cannot afford to buy a new car but drives a car with low emissions, it is totally unfair that he or she should have to pay three times the tax his or her neighbour must pay because his car is a few years older.

This issue must be revisited as a matter of urgency. A person gave me a letter to pass on to the Minister because he had got no answer to it. I also put down questions on it. I accept that the law was passed through this House to make this legal but making something legal does not make it right. If two children in school were handed sweets but one was handed a box of sweets and the other just one sweet, we would call it discrimination. As far as these people are concerned, this is major discrimination.

We must consider other areas where we can cut emissions and deal with some of our problems. I understand there is a major problem at present given that China no longer wants to buy bales of plastic refuse. Surely this material could be turned into biodiesel or some other product in this country. Over the years we have at enormous cost exported meat and bone meal which had to be disposed of because of BSE — I saw the export figures the other day and they are scary. This was exported and burned to give clean, cheap energy to our German counterparts. Is it any wonder we have become uncompetitive if we export something that is extremely useful for creating energy? We must consider all these areas, not just cars.

I wish to mention in passing a problem that continues in Border regions with regard to penalty points. I urge the Ministers concerned to try to bring this to a head as soon as possible. As a member and vice chairman of the British-Irish Interparliamentary Body, I know it has raised this issue on several occasions and has got movement to some degree. When I am driving down the M1, as I do every week and sometimes several times a week, I usually travel at the maximum, without apologies, as that is what we are allowed to do. If possible, I set the car on automatic, which saves fuel and protects the car, and this is far better than travelling on the old roads. If cars overtake me, I am certain that three out of four will have non-Irish number plates. It is a serious matter because many of these cars are involved in accidents. The same thing happens in the other direction. If I am going to Belfast, I may be as much a chancer as some of the others because I know the likelihood of my being caught, if I am in a hurry, is not that great. I would like to have this matter dealt with.

There is also an issue with regard to coming to Dublin which was raised by my colleague, Deputy Fergus O'Dowd, and has been highlighted in the House umpteen times. If we are serious about cutting CO2 emissions and we are using tax to do it, why can we not make sure that areas such as the tunnel in Dublin have proper park and ride systems to ensure people park on the edge of the city rather than bringing their cars into the centre? In Canada and other countries, there is a structure whereby if three or more people are in a vehicle, they can travel in the bus lanes, which encourages people to come together and instead of having three vehicles travelling to the city centre, there is only one. I also ask that we would reconsider the situation regarding speed limits.

I meant to talk more on the issue of support to the county councils, which have serious funding problems this year. We do not know what will be the total amount paid by the Government but it will not be that generous. Councils have lost out on funding this year due to the reduced number of houses being built and they have also lost because as housing estates are no longer being built, they will not get the 5% of housing they would have hoped to get from those estates. They will have to reconsider this situation. I urge the Minister to ensure county councils are given what extra funds are needed rather than forcing them to raise their other charges.

The €200 parking charge for Dublin will hit some people, although I personally do not have a major problem with it. However, if the Government encouraged more job creation in our towns and country areas, there would not be the same pressure on Dublin, Galway and other cities. Towards that end, there is an enormous need to energise the Government to make sure jobs are created in rural areas, particularly the Border area. Monaghan has not had a single development with regard to jobs since the Troubles and Cavan has not done much better. These areas must be seriously considered. If jobs are created there, it will save much travelling to Dublin and will save congestion in other areas. Many people in Monaghan must get up at 4.30 a.m or 5 a.m. to get into their cars to avoid the rush in Dublin, which is leading to increased CO2 emissions and other problems.

I wish the Bill well but I hope some of the issues I and others have raised will be addressed.

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