Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There are many bushes. That is the problem. The Minister, Deputy Madigan, will not allow us to cut bushes. We debated that for two years but we finally passed legislation allowing people to cut bushes under supervision in March and August. The Minister just drove a coach and four through it. The Minister of State, Deputy Moran, knows hauliers and can speak to them. The truck mirrors are being broken. These people are doing their best but there are onerous restrictions with respect to tachographs, insurance and driver issues. I salute the drivers but we must consider what they face in Calais. We are talking about migrants and stowaways and these people are trying to protect their trucks. These are innocent or unsuspecting drivers and there are all kinds of sophisticated methods to get access into a truck with a sealed container by cutting off the hinges. As the hauliers must live with this as well, they need some tangible support.

The industry is vital to our economy. The Minister of State might laugh if he likes about the bushes but this industry provides massive employment and a dedicated service to rural Ireland. The bulk tankers go in and out boreens to collect milk and that is much more difficult to transport because it moves and sways. The drivers must be very careful and respectful. The RSA must be pulled back and the benefit of the doubt given to drivers. I am sure Deputy O'Keeffe agrees that the road I mentioned is desperate and needs improvement. When drivers travel that road, the RSA is waiting at the other end. The trucks might have been perfect before hitting that stretch of road. There are many other stretches of road like that but I have been lobbied about this by a big haulage company from Cahir. When the lorries are pulled in, people in white overalls lie under the trucks with equipment to check the calibration. That is grossly unfair. These are decent people providing much employment and ensuring that our imports and exports in particular get to ports on time. They ensure the products get to their destinations on time. We know many of those products have a limited shelf life. The hauliers must be supported.

This scheme is too cumbersome. Why is there a rebate rather than something across the board? Diesel prices have increased enormously in the past year. Why not give these people something up-front rather than having them paying now before getting something back a couple of months from now? I know how difficult it is to get rebates. This is not working and I appeal to the Minister, on my behalf and that of Deputy Fitzmaurice, to show some solidarity with hauliers. They are worried about Brexit and everything else.

Fine Gael has an election candidate in Wexford who is a good friend of mine, Ms Verona Murphy, so the party should show her that it means business and will not silence her on any issues. It should support her and ní neart go chur le chéile. She is a good lady who understands the pressures of the haulage industry intimately. One would think I am canvassing for her.

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