Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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287. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will review the effectiveness of the toll rebate scheme for licensed hauliers, in light of reports that operators are not receiving actual rebates due to excessive bureaucracy and red tape; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38998/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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288. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the steps his Department is taking to reduce the administrative burden associated with the toll rebate scheme for hauliers; if he will engage directly with the IRHA to simplify the process and remove unnecessary barriers to access; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38999/25]

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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289. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department has assessed the disproportionate cost burden on Fingal-based hauliers, who often must use multiple tolled routes such as the M1 and M50 daily; if more tailored or automatic rebate mechanism could be introduced for operators in key logistics corridors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39000/25]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal East, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 287, 288 and 289 together.

As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. Under the Roads Acts 1993-2015, the operation and management of individual national roads is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), in conjunction with the local authorities concerned.

Therefore, matters relating to the day to day operations regarding national roads, including toll roads are within the remit of TII. More specifically, the statutory power to levy tolls, to make toll bye-laws and to enter into agreements with private investors are vested in TII under Part V of the Roads Act 1993 (as amended). Moreover, the contracts for the privately-operated toll schemes are commercial agreements between TII and the Public Private Partnership (PPP) concessionaires concerned.

Noting the above position, I have referred the question regarding unpaid tolls to TII for a direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.

Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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290. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if reforms are planned to better support hauliers in light of rising operating costs, labour shortages and fuel concerns;; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39001/25]

Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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Rising Operator Costs

While recent years have been challenging for the haulage and road freight sector, my Department has taken measures to ensure that operators are insulated from the most pronounced of these costs.

Two temporary haulage support schemes were run by my Department in 2022 and 2023, with €15.6 million paid out in each year to 3,085 and 2,828 operators respectively, representing approximately 81% and 74% of the overall road haulage operators licensed in the State. Year on year, the number of haulage operators that applied for and received support under the Schemes dropped by 8%.

The Licensed Haulage Emergency Support Scheme 2022 was designed to assist haulage businesses dealing with a sudden and severe spike in diesel prices following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in February 2022. The Licensed Haulage Support Scheme 2023 was a response to the ongoing cost pressures faced by hauliers in this period. Both haulage support schemes operated under the EU Temporary Crisis Framework (TCF) on State Aid, adopted to address the economic impacts, in particular on energy prices, of the war in Ukraine.

While challenges remain for the sector, diesel prices have fallen back from the peaks seen in the second half of 2022. A Diesel Rebate Scheme (DRS) has been in place since 2013 and remains available to licensed haulage operators in respect of vehicles over 7.5 tonnes. At diesel prices over €1.43, including VAT, the maximum rebate of 7.5 cent per litre is provided.

There is still scope for the haulage sector to make better use of the DRS. Although the DRS is available in respect of vehicles over 7.5 tonnes only and not all haulage operators would qualify on that basis, the total number of DRS claimants in 2024 represented only approximately 45% of the total number of road haulage operators licensed in the State. Data provided to my Department from the Revenue Commissioners show that a total of 1,918 claimants applied for the DRS in 2024, a fall of about 2% on the previous year. My Department will continue to monitor the evolution of fuel prices and will remain engaged on an ongoing basis with the relevant sectoral representative bodies.

Labour Shortages

Measures to tackle the labour shortages and address the skills gap are included in Ireland’s Road Haulage Strategy 2022–2031 and the Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Group (LSCSG) Work Programme 2024-2027.

Following engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, the quota for employment permits for HGV drivers from outside the European Union/European Economic Area (EEA) was removed in 2021. Ireland currently has licence exchange agreements for HGV drivers with five countries outside of the EEA. These countries are South Korea, Japan, Australia, South Africa and Georgia.

Ukrainian drivers who are resident in Ireland on a temporary basis under the Temporary Protection Directive and who hold a category C (truck) Ukrainian driving licence and a Ukrainian Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) card can apply for an Irish Driver CPC card after completing Additional Compulsory Training. Once they have an Irish CPC, they can drive professionally in Ireland.

Additional training for category C licence holders consists of 35 hours of classroom-based training and 8 hours of supervised driving. On successful completion of the additional compulsory training, the driver can apply to the Driver Education Section in the Road Safety Authority for their Driver CPC qualification card. The temporary Driver CPC code 95.01 will be printed on the card, and it will be valid until 6 March 2025.

While recruitment from abroad will help to partially alleviate the HGV driver shortage, it is not the full solution. Instead, it is important to address the driver shortage in a fully sustainable way and encourage people already living in Ireland to consider driving as a career.

A number of new training and educational opportunities have been developed in recent years, including the Transport Operations and Commercial Driver Apprenticeship Scheme, where young people and new entrants can earn as they learn with leading transport businesses, as well as a Logistics and Distribution 1-year traineeship, where participants will be on practical placement in the industry for 12 weeks, in various blocks, over the duration of the year.

Another important educational opportunity is the Professional HGV Training Programme, which is a 7-month course designed to offer a pathway for new entrants into the profession of commercial driving. It is fully funded by the SOLAS Traineeship Scheme and is offered by Education & Training Boards (ETBs) across the country.

A full list of the available educational and training opportunities in the sector can be found in the ‘Overview of Existing Education and Training Provision in Logistics and Supply Chain’ document, which is being updated and can be found on the gov.ie/LSCSG webpage.

Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Group Work Programme 2024-2027

The LSCSG Work Programme aligns closely with Ireland’s Road Haulage Strategy 2022–2031, this 10-year strategy fulfils a Programme for Government commitment to produce the first-ever government strategy dedicated to the haulage and road freight sector. The strategy focuses on generating efficiencies, improving standards, securing jobs, and helping the road freight sector move to a low-carbon future.

The LSCSG Work Programme contains 12 priority actions to support the promotion of careers, education and skills development, and sustainable employment in logistics and supply chain activities and can be viewed at LSCSG Work Programme 2024-2027.

In the LSCSG Work Programme, action leads are designated for each action and these leads are expected to provide progress updates on their work at quarterly meetings of the full LSCSG between Q3 2024 and Q4 2027. For some actions, it may be appropriate to convene a subgroup of the LSCSG to work collaboratively on delivery; subgroups can be retired when an action is completed.

Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Group (LSCSG)

The Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Group (LSCSG) was established in 2019 to support the promotion of careers, skills development and sustainable employment in the logistics and supply chain sectors in Ireland. The Group includes relevant Government Departments, education and training providers and industry representatives. It is currently chaired by my Department.

The LSCSG seeks to increase the recruitment of HGV drivers and other logistics and supply chain workers and to promote safe and healthy working conditions in the sector. Further information on the work of the LSCSG, including links to its publications, can be found at www.gov.ie/lscsg.

The LSCSG meets regularly to discuss ways to tackle the skills shortage. The work programme for 2024-2027 aligns closely with Ireland’s Road Haulage Strategy (RHS) 2022-203.

In 2022, the Group completed work on a number of documents relating to careers in Logistics and Supply Chain. These include a ‘Careers in Logistics and Supply Chain’ brochure, which details the variety of job roles in the sector and an ‘Overview of Existing Education and Training Provision in Logistics and Supply Chain’ document, which outlines all education and training opportunities currently available in logistics and supply chain and which is periodically updated to include new courses. These documents can be viewed at Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Group Publications.

The first ever Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week (Logistics Week) took place from 27 March until 1 April 2023.

Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week 2025, the third annual week of events to highlight career and educational opportunities in the sector, took place from Monday 31 March to Saturday 5 April. Planning for the fourth Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week to be held from 16 to 23 April 2026 has commenced.

Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Week 2025 consisted of a number of events nationally including the second LogisTYcs Skills Expo. The objective of Logistics Week is to promote the logistics and supply chain sector to students, new entrants, and potential career changers.

The LogisTYcs Skills Expo is designed specifically for Transition Year (TY) students. The second LogisTYcs Skills Expo was held on Thursday 3 April 2025. A third LogisTYcs Skills Expo is the planning for 2026.

Transport and Logistics specific Career Fairs held by Intreo/Department of Social Protection are amongst the key events of Logistics and Supply Chain Skills Weeks. These provide employers and potential employees the opportunity to meet and discuss available job roles in the sector. This year saw four well attended events nationally providing job opportunities to people seeking or looking to change employment.

Fuel Concerns

The Department of Climate, Energy and Environment oversee the testing and sampling of fuels as relevant to air quality under the Fuel Quality Directive (as amended). This Directive does not cover all elements of fuel quality. In line with Ireland's Road Haulage Strategy 2022–2031, the Department of Transport engages with, and maintains a close working relationship with, the road haulage sector across a range of issues including efforts to decarbonise heavy duty vehicle fleets and the shift to alternative fuels. The Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA) have raised concerns relating to fuel quality in Ireland with the Department of Transport and the Department has provided assistance to the IRHA to bring their concerns to the attention of the fuels industry.