Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent)

I welcome the Bill as far as it goes, although I recognise its limitation because I gather it needs to be enacted by 4 December and the Minister is promising a much more comprehensive road transport Bill in the coming year, which will be welcome. It is not fair to criticise the details of the Bill because we accept it is minimalist. I take in good faith the Minister's promise to produce a more comprehensive and important Bill next year.

I am somewhat staggered by the obvious need for the Bill. Reading between the lines of what the Minister said, whereas he said there are approximately 7,000 licensed operators of approximately 25,000 large vehicles, we do not get a picture of the number of unlicensed operators or the number of vehicles on the roads that are operating either below par or without licences. It would be very helpful to have that information. Across Europe the problem is extensive and based on what we have heard from the Minister, it would seem self-evident that a large number of cowboys are operating in this market and need to be dealt with.

I welcome the detailed provisions in the Bill. It is important that those in this industry should be of good repute, which is the first principle of the Bill. I welcome Internet access to the register which will provide greater accessibility. There is an obvious need to update the penalties. The staggeringly small penalties in this area were hardly a deterrent to people breaking the rules or becoming unlicensed operators.

I was particularly interested to note that the Bill covers Bus Éireann. I was not aware that Bus Éireann even needed to apply for a licence. I would be interested to know how often it is required to apply for a licence and the terms under which it is granted. I am concerned that the State sector may be the biggest cowboy in the transport industry.

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