Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

I am delighted to have the opportunity to raise this issue. The taxi regulator produced the review of the taxi and hackney market during the week and she did not recommend a moratorium on taxi numbers. I want to determine the progress that can be made on this matter. The review indicates the hackney and taxi market was responsible for approximately 100 million trips nationwide in 2008 and that the industry is worth approximately €1.5 billion. At present, 77% of cabs are taxis and 23% are hackneys. In 2005, 72% were taxis and 28% were hackneys. Therefore, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of taxis by comparison with hackneys.

The report concluded that the number of hours worked per week were above the standard number and amounted to 52, on average. However, some taxi drivers had a second job or were working part-time. Those with a second job were working an average of 75 hours per week, which raises certain issues pertaining to safety. Approximately 30% of drivers were discovered to have a second job or to be working part-time. This is a very substantial proportion. More than 16% had a second job and some 69 million working hours were clocked up in total. These statistics demonstrate it is a very substantial industry, worth €1.5 billion or €1.6 billion. At the end of 2008, 13,000 cab drivers were working in Dublin. Of all cab drivers in the country, 59% are operating in Dublin. This represents a significant increase.

The regulator indicates she understands circumstances have deteriorated and that taxi drivers are working significantly longer hours to make the same amount of money that they used to make. She recognised this is a serious issue and that certain drivers are working much longer than what would be regarded as normal. However, she does not recommend any step to deal with this, other than to try to improve the standards in the industry. There is no recommendation on a moratorium. I ask that we at least have a temporary one so we can take stock and have a better review and analysis of what has been happening in recent years. The Minister of State well knows that if one comes to Dublin any night of the week one will see the streets chock-a-block with taxis. It has transformed dramatically in recent years. In the past, we had far too few taxis but that was back in the 1990s. Now, it seems to be increasingly difficult for taxi drivers to make a decent living. They must work extravagant hours with all this means for safety in the workplace.

At present one can dispose of a taxi plate privately. It would be more appropriate for it to be sold back to the local authority from which it was obtained. In this way, we could know to a much better degree what plates are out there and the standards to which a taxi plate operates.

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