Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I established an interdepartmental group last January to assess the implications of introducing a pay-as-you-go road tax system for HGVs, in response to concerns raised by hauliers about the cost of running a haulage operation in Ireland. In particular, the IRHA believes the current motor tax regime is unfair to hauliers with international operations, which have to pay road-user charges in certain other European countries, and would prefer a system based on time on the road or on distance travelled. 

The group is made up of representatives from my Department, the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, the Department of Finance, the National Roads Authority, the Road Safety Authority, An Garda Síochána and Forfás. I hope to receive the final report from the group by the end of July. I do not want to anticipate its findings but I can give Members an update on the work to date.

The group has carried out a review of the current motor tax arrangements for HGVs, including the administrative procedures and the tax raised. The group has examined other charges levied on the domestic HGV operators, such as tolls and fuel costs, and other charges which hauliers face as business operators, including labour costs. The cost to haulage operators carrying loads outside Ireland has been considered. A full review has been carried out of the road-charging regimes in other European states, including the system introduced in the UK this year. The relevant European Union legislation in this area has also been examined. The group has identified various options for changes to the motor tax regime in Ireland to support the haulage industry and ensure transport costs do not have a negative impact on Irish businesses, particularly Irish exporters who are driving our economic recovery. I look forward to receiving this report later in the summer.

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