Sean Barrett (Independent)

Returning to the theme of employment, in The Irish Times of yesterday there is a headline that I found astonishing. "New rules to see serious exit from the taxi sector".

The Minister of State has said that numbers in the taxi industry should be reduced by between 13% and 22%. The headline should instead read that the Minister of State wishes to see the abolition of 4,900 to 8,360 jobs. The deregulation of the taxi sector happened in the teeth of the opposition from the Department - which had done a deal to confine new entrants to those who already held licences - and in the teeth of the opposition from the incumbents. The other feature is that it increased employment in the sector by 30,000, from 2000 to date. The Goodbody report found that the value of the time saved by not having to wait for a taxi was worth approximately €790 million. The taxi industry grew to be worth €1.5 billion in 2008, compared with €193 million consumer receipts on the railways and €329 million on buses. When divided by the number of drivers, the revenue per person employed is about €39,000. It is a viable business willed into existence because people started to acquire taxis whereas in the previous system they had been limited for more than 20 years. The judgment in the court case was that people have a right to enter a sector for which they have the skills and training and the public has the right to the services of such persons. It is bizarre that a Minister of State should wish-----