Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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1103. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to address the road haulage drivers' dispute concerning their huge costs; if he will confirm that 2,000 jobs have moved from the State in the haulage sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41073/14]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I appreciate the difficulties that the Irish road haulage industry has faced in recent years and my Department has acted on several issues in support of the sector.  I am encouraged by the fact that the number of vehicles authorised on Road Haulage Operator Licences at the end of September of this year (16,211) shows an increase of 10.4% on the figure for the same time last year, while the number of licensed operators has remained stable (3,839 at the end of September 2014).  This indicates that fleet sizes are increasing and demonstrates the resilience of the haulage sector.

I would like to draw your attention to the position as outlined in a report from April of this year by the European Commission on the state of the EU road transport market.  Among other things, this report indicates that while some costs for hauliers are higher in Ireland than in some other Member States, it is also the case that certain other cost drivers are lower in Ireland than in some other Member States, such as the price of diesel fuel.  The report indicates that the average EU net amount of charges per vehicle/km is 18c.  It gives a figure of 20.5c for Ireland, which is notably lower than the UK figure of 25c and puts Ireland close to the EU average.

It is also worth noting that the Diesel Rebate Scheme, which my Department was involved in introducing and which came into effect in July 2013, allows hauliers to claim back 7.5c per litre of the duty on diesel fuel purchased for their business.

 In response to concerns raised by hauliers about the cost of running a haulage operation in Ireland, an Interdepartmental Group chaired by my Department was established in February of this year to assess the implications (technical, regulatory and economic dimensions) of introducing a pay-as-you-go road tax system for HGVs.  The Group is made up of representatives from the Departments of Transport, Tourism and Sport; Environment, Community and Local Government; and Finance; the National Roads Authority; the Road Safety Authority; An Garda Síochána; and Forfás.  The Group had intended to finalise its recommendations in the summer of 2014, as previously reported by my predecessor as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport.  The initial work carried out by the Group has raised additional issues for its consideration, leading to a deferral in the finalisation of its report.  I have given the Group additional time to complete its work to ensure that the report is as comprehensive as possible and the report is expected to be presented to me and the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government before the end of this year.

In relation to the assertion that 2,000 jobs in the haulage sector have moved from the State, my Department is not in a position to evaluate this claim and it is difficult to see how it could be definitively confirmed or disproved by any Department or body.  However, the contention is not supported by the fact quoted above that the Irish haulage sector now has more vehicles registered than at this time last year.