Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move recommendation No. 2:

In page 11, after line 33, to insert the following:“8. The Minister shall, within 3 months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before the Oireachtas a report on the possibility of extending the Benefit in Kind for electric vehicles beyond the current date of 31 December 2018.”.

As regards benefit-in-kind, it is important that if we are asking and encouraging employers to upgrade their fleet to electric cars, there be certainty on the 0% rate for more than one year because we want people to embrace it. A person who replaces his or her fleet over three or four years and replaces a third or a quarter of his or her vehicles according to his or her fleet replacement policy should not discover in a year's time that the rate has been changed. That is not the intention of what the Government is trying to do but my recommendation aims to give a little more certainty and positivity to the scheme. It is a good scheme for those with cars to which benefit-in-kind applies but does not benefit those who buy their own cars. However, it is a good scheme to somewhat incentivise a move toward fleets comprising more electric vehicles where possible and I would like there to be a bit more clarity from the Government to encourage and facilitate that move.