Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I raised the issue previously, and I had a private word with Senator Sean D. Barrett, but we seem to be at variance on our figures. I do not for one moment dispute his figures. He showed me the source of the figures he has just put on the record but the source I have, which is the Taxi Alliance of Ireland, states that 74% of all taxi licences are in Dublin and if the cities of Galway, Cork and Limerick are included, this equates to 89% of all licences. The Taxi Alliance of Ireland makes the point that this is not a fair distribution for the other 16 counties and it goes some way to explaining why there is so much illegal taxi operation and also, as the Minister of State said, why there is not an adequate taxi service in areas of the country. There is some variance in the figures. I do not dispute those provided by Senator Sean D. Barrett but perhaps the Minister of State can clarify the issue.