asked the Minister for Tourism and Transport if he is aware that 61 per cent of all freight from Donegal to Northern Ireland and 90 per cent of freight from Northern Ireland to Donegal is carried out by Northern Ireland licensed hauliers; and the steps he proposes to take to make it equally competitive for Donegal freight carriers to operate.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Freight Carriers.
29.
The Deputy appears to be quoting figures from the Derry/ Donegal Communications Study recently published. While it is true that Northern Ireland hauliers dominate the cross-Border traffic, the distribution is distorted by the fact that the carryings of the Lough Swilly Company, which holds a merchandise licence in the State and is the traditional haulier over much of Donegal, are, because the company is based in Northern Ireland, included in the figures for Northern Ireland hauliers. The study also points out that 90 per cent of cross-Border freight traffic is carried by own account vehicles, so that in the overall picture the major problem is one of high incidence of own account traffic rather than dominance of Northern Ireland hauliers.
The proposals before the Oireachtas in the Road Transport Bill, 1978, to increase the capacity of "existing carrier" licences, to grant import-export haulage licences and to decontrol haulage in lighter vehicles should, when the Bill is enacted, enable County Donegal hauliers and indeed Irish hauliers in general to compete for a greater share of cross-Border traffic.
Irish hauliers have shown themselves to be competitive in other areas of international haulage particularly the meat trade and I have no doubt they will, given the greater freedom to expand proposed in the Bill, extend this competitiveness to the area of cross-Border haulage.
Is it not true, even though the facts mentioned distort the problem somewhat, that the real problem is that the cost of vehicles here is very much higher than in Northern Ireland and that distorts the competition because our hauliers are less competitive?
To some degree that is the reason. I feel that the rather restrictive manner in which hauliers had to operate previously was partly the cause. Changes are now being made so that a person holding a licence for one vehicle can have six vehicles——
That was another thing of which the Minister did not approve.
——where we can grant an import-export haulage licence and whereby the smaller type vehicles no longer need licences, and I feel that Donegal will fare better in future because of the new Bill.
Would the Minister agree that the Bill in which these provisions are contained is, with small amendments, the Bill which I introduced and on which the Minister's party put down an amendment to refuse a Second Reading?
Not at all. It is quite a different Bill.
Line by line it is my Bill.
It is a well thoughtout Bill and it took me a very considerable time to put it into perspective.
It was well thoughtout because I thought it out.
Does the Minister consider that the tachograph regulations will have an effect on the hauliers in Donegal?
That is a separate question.
I am telling the Deputy about the assistance we are giving to Donegal through a very worth-while Transport Bill which took me a very considerable time to develop and put before the House.
What about the tachograph regulations?
I might add that the previous Government had that Bill in the incubator for a very long time and when it was brought before the House it was never discussed. I had quite a considerable job preparing a worth-while Bill.