Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is an important issue and we need to continue to talk to the sector about all elements of the supply chain. The Department of Transport is in close contact with the shipping sector. Operators have indicated that sufficient shipping capacity is available on direct routes to continental ports. The Department of Transport and the Irish Maritime Development Office concur with that. A number of new direct services have been launched in the past year with extra sailings planned on existing routes. New direct routes launched in 2020 include those from Cork to Zeebrugge, Dublin to Santander, Waterford to Rotterdam, Rosslare to Bilbao and Rosslare to Roscoff. Extra sailings planned for next year include those from Rosslare to Cherbourg and Cork to Roscoff. Ferry operators have indicated that they are capable of responding to a further increase in demand beyond what is already catered for. At present, spare capacity is available on routes from Ireland to continental Europe, and there is spare freight-carrying capacity in the European shipping industry generally.

However, some hauliers are asking for daily roll-on roll-off services from Rosslare. I read in the media today that the chief executive of Rosslare Europort is talking to a shipping operator about providing such a service. This is an ongoing discussion. Subsidising a route would not necessarily be helpful because it could potentially put some of the existing routes out of business and cause market disruption which might cause more problems than it solves. We will keep talking to the sector to ensure we get this right before the end of the year.

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