Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

It was the 1970s and the early 1980s and the only way we could get to places was to thumb. When I got my first car, I said I would never pass anybody who was thumbing at the side of the road, and I always picked up people. I was very grateful for all the lifts I got over a long number of years. However, nowadays nobody gives lifts. For that very reason one never sees anyone thumbing because people know they will not get a lift, society has changed so much over the last 20 or 30 years. People have various reasons for not picking up hitch-hikers, mostly to do with not feeling safe. Then there are other aspects to do with what might happen in a car, whether it is a lady or a man who is driving. The whole aspect of life has changed and then, of course, there are the pub opening hours and drink driving. All of these reasons have led to the pilot scheme that the Minister has put forward, for which there is a great need. That is why I believe if there is any person in Government who can achieve this and pull all those strands together, it is the Minister, Deputy Ó Cuív.

I urge him to take on board the very constructive proposals that have been put forward because this is an excellent scheme. The school transport scheme has worked enormously well since the mid-1960s, and perhaps the rural transport initiative is based on those routes. I do not mind whether it is a matter of taking people to the pub at night, since there is a great social aspect to be addressed in this regard for rural areas. The pub is rural life; let us face it and not be ashamed to say this. Were it not for rural pubs, there would be virtually total exclusion in rural area. I know the county councils have tried greatly in recent years to include everybody in rural communities, but it is not that easy for local authorities. At least, however, many go to the pub and perhaps meet people there on a weekly or monthly basis. This is a scheme that has worked well. I hope we can all work together and put these things back on track by putting a rural transport initiative in place which will save on carbon emissions and so forth.