Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I support the amendment and agree that the requirement regarding licensing and insurance should be set out in a categoric way in the legislation. There is concern among taxi drivers that the nature of the business lends itself to an unregulated element. To clarify one point made by Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett, deregulation was not, as such, a decision by a previous Government but had more to do with a court case decision which found that the existing legislative provisions were a problem from a consumer perspective. It is not a major point, but it does no harm to clarify it.

Anything we can do in this legislation to reflect the desire of Members on all sides of the House to ensure we have a properly regulated taxi industry should be done. It should be seen as a full-time profession, not a go-to sector for part-time operators and fly-by-nights without proper qualifications.

It should allow those who decide to take part in the profession to make a meaningful existence, carry on their business and raise a family the same as anyone else in a profession.

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