Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am well aware of that and my name is on the amendment. The haulage industry is so vital that one of the Fine Gael candidates in Wexford is part of it. The party must be getting around to understanding how vital it is. As Deputy Fitzmaurice has said, we have so little rail, canal or other type of transport, the road haulage industry is vital to our survival in terms of both imports and exports. Very little of our farm produce goes by air and any other goods we export internationally go via a haulier.

I salute the hauliers. Many of them started very small but now have gone to five or ten trucks and some have dozens or more. They have gone through hell in the past number of years because of many issues. The Government has done nothing about insurance and although a diesel rebate scheme was introduced, it is difficult to reclaim any money. Why will the Government not do anything tangible? Goodness knows diesel is dear as it is for a car or a van, never mind the big trucks where it might cost €600, €700, €800 or perhaps €1,000 to fill them. This rebate scheme is not doing what it says on the tin. The hauliers will have an annual night of lobbying here next week or the week after and they come every year. We know the issues and the Government must know them as well. The Ministers of State, Deputies Moran and D'Arcy, should certainly know as they are from rural Ireland, where many of the haulage companies are based. There are some in Dublin as well. These companies are struggling.

The Road Safety Authority, RSA, is certainly needed but there are certain roads, including one in Deputy O'Keeffe's native county from Mitchelstown to Mallow, where lorries are being checked regularly by the authority. There are bushes hanging over roads and road inclines that do some shocking damage to those trucks but the RSA personnel are waiting at the other end to penalise the hauliers. The hauliers must operate to a very high standard now and it is right that trucks and trailers have tachographs and are tested twice a year. One journey on a road and the equipment, including suspension and mirrors, can be knocked out of kilter. It can cost up to €500 for a mirror. These hauliers need support with tangible measures. They do not need to be victimised and the RSA must understand that the laden weight on axles and their calibration can easily be shifted or distorted. I understand a bit of this. If a lorry comes upon a joint checkpoint with the traffic corps and RSA, the calibration could be out when it is checked. The trucks might then be brought to a weighing station that could be a large distance away. The drivers would get penalty points if there are issues. We should be fair to the people who have their trucks tested. Motorways are fine, thank God, but we do not have a great road network. The Acting Chairman will know this is the case in parts of Galway and around the country. The Irish Road Haulage Association has produced many videos demonstrating how drivers must keep to the middle of the road to avoid overhanging trees or otherwise they break the mirrors.

The rebate scheme introduced two years ago is not easy to navigate. That is what hauliers have told me. I am an agricultural contractor, not a road haulier, but I certainly understand the issues and we have no rebate scheme. One might say a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

See this speech in context