Michael Comiskey (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I second Senator Henry's proposal. I also want to raise an issue that I raised back in the spring - costs for hauliers in the Republic of Ireland, particularly hauliers who operate along the Border, because £10 must be paid every time a vehicle enters and exits the North. The same applies to all hauliers in the country, but the cost is of particular importance to hauliers who operate along the Border. I know this because I have been contacted by a number of them over the past week or ten days. The Irish Road Haulage Association was here last week to brief us on a number of issues. Hauliers must pay huge costs due to the price of insurance and diesel, so a £10 fee is an added cost. Some hauliers travel from Donegal into the North and then leave the jurisdiction via Cavan or Monaghan, because they want to go through the North in order to deliver items in other parts of the Republic. Action should be taken and something must be done to help hauliers with their business, because they employ quite a large number of people and move many goods from one part of the country to another. The £10 fee is an unfair cost for them and we must do something to help them out.