Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)

I explained what is happening to the Deputy a few minutes ago and I am not going to waste Dáil time repeating it. The overall subsidy available to Bus Éireann is as it was. The difficulty faced by CIE is being faced across the country in a range of sectors - a reduction in the number of passengers using the buses leading to a fall in revenue. We have asked Bus Éireann to live within its means as far as it can this year and next year.

Bus Éireann intends to maintain its network, although there may be a reduction in service levels on some routes.

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