Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
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151. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of drivers directly employed by CIÉ tours; the number of drivers contracted by CIÉ tours to operate their services; the steps the company can take to ensure all drivers either directly employed or contracted abide by current regulations related to maximum working time driving and breaks and so on; if the NTA has any role in the implementation and enforcement of such regulations as they apply to transport sector and to the tourism sector specifically; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23948/24]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party)
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As Minister for Transport, I am the shareholder in CIÉ, which is a commercial State-owned body that operates within the context of legislation and the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies. CIÉ Tours is a wholly owned subsidiary of CIÉ; it operates on a commercial basis and its business is as a tour operator mainly arranging international tourist tour-travel into Ireland from North America.

Operations of CIÉ Tours - such as the number of drivers contracted by CIÉ tours to operate their services; the steps the company takes to ensure all drivers either directly employed or contracted abide by current regulations related to maximum working time driving and breaks and so on - are, in the first instance, matters for the management and Board of the company and its parent, and are not matters in which the Minister has a specific role. I have therefore forwarded this aspect of the Deputy's question to CIÉ for direct response.

Regarding the portion of your question asking whether the NTA has any role in the implementation and enforcement of certain regulations as they apply to transport sector and to the tourism sector. I have forwarded this aspect of the Deputy's question to the NTA for direct response.

Please contact my private office if a reply has not been received within 10 working days.