asked the Minister for Transport the current position in relation to our quotas in bilateral and multilateral haulage licences; and if he has any plans to improve further our position in relation to the current quotas.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Haulage Licence Quotas.
20.
Bilateral road transport agreements have been negotiated and are in operation between Ireland and Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and the UK. These agreements provide for the issue of permits to the hauliers of either country within the limits of annual quotas fixed on a reciprocal basis. In each case the permits, which are issued by the competent authority — in Ireland the Department of Transport — of the country in which the vehicle is registered, authorise the carriage of goods by road between Ireland and the other country concerned or in transit throughout either country.
Road transport agreements have also been negotiated with Norway, Sweden, Finland and Greece and these agreements will come into operation shortly. Negotiations are proceeding on proposed agreements with the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia.
The annual quotas under the six agreements at present in operation are adequate to meet current requirements. They are kept under constant review and, where necessary, my Department seek increases in the quotas to keep them in line, as far as possible, with Irish requirements.
Ireland has an allocation of 76 multilateral authorisations under the EEC Community quota system, which permits haulage for reward on a multilateral basis between the ten member states of the EEC, as well as an allocation of 22 multilateral licences under a similar licensing scheme operated by the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT) which covers Austria, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and Yugoslavia as well as the ten EEC member states.
The question of increasing the number of licences available under the ECMT scheme was considered at a meeting of the Council of Ministers of the ECMT which I attended on 26 November 1981. The council decided to refer the matter to a meeting of the Committee of Deputies of the ECMT to be held in January 1982 so that it can be examined in the light of decisions taken by the EEC Council of Transport Ministers on 15 December 1981 on a Commission proposal to increase the Community quota for 1982.
These two multilateral licensing schemes are of considerable significance for Ireland because of our geographical situation as an island on the periphery of Europe. I will continue to press strongly both in the EEC and in the ECMT for increases in Ireland's allocations of multilateral licences.
Would the Minister indicate the number of French licences in the bilateral agreement?
I am afraid I do not have the number of licences granted under the bilateral arrangement with France. But I can say that the annual quota of journeys is 5,300 plus a co-operation quota of 400.
Would the Minister agree that there is need to have this number increased and that it militates against satisfactory improvement of our international road haulage industry? I understood that negotiations took place on a continuing basis. Is the Minister involved in any negotiations at present to improve our position with the French authorities under the bilateral agreement?
In April last I understand there was an increase of 300 journeys negotiated with the French authorities.
That was as a result of good negotiation by the Minister at the time.
I understand that that is sufficient to meet the requirements of the industry at present. But the annual quotas under the bilateral agreements with all the countries, not just France, are kept under constant review and wherever necessary negotiations to increase them will take place.
Would the Minister agree that there has been no improvement at all under either our EEC licence or the ECMT and that it was suggested that we should convert more of them to short-term authorisations. Has the Minister any plans to convert any of them this year to accommodate road haulage development?
There is a limit as to the number that could be converted without totally undoing the good of having multilateral licences under the ECMT. A certain number are converted depending on the demand from time to time under the traffic requirements. These things are kept under constant review and adjustments are made depending on the trafficking from time to time. The Deputy can be quite certain that the haulage industry and my Department keep in close contact with each other with regard to the licensing requirements and, in turn, we keep in close contact with the countries with whom we are in bilateral agreement and in the international community, in the EEC and at the ECMT we will make our case also.
Would the Minister confirm that there have been objections——
This must be the Deputy's final supplementary.
——from the German authorities with regard to improving our quotas in this area? Will the Minister now undertake to start fresh bilateral agreements, particularly with France and Germany, to improve the situation for the Irish haulage industry?
There is no difficulty on a bilateral basis——
On a multilateral.
There is no difficulty with regard to bilateral agreements. The difficulty arises with regard to the multilateral quota. Undoubtedly the country mentioned by the Deputy, Germany, was one of the objectors at the meeting last week of the European Conference. There were other countries objecting, those that find themselves transit countries in Europe — Austria, Switzerland, to a lesser extent, Yugoslavia and Germany. They are objectors to the quota being increased on the grounds that they have to take all the extra lorries the increased quotas generate. This is something that is being negotiated within the EEC and within the ECMT. It calls for further consideration by the EEC in a fortnight's time and possibly if a change is effected there that change will find its way into the ECMT. We might effect an improvement there next May when the ECMT meet in Dublin.
As a result of the position of power the Minister now holds within the ECMT, of which he is the new chairman, could he be in any way hopeful that the quota of ECMT licences of 22 can be increased next year as a result of the meeting of last week?
I would not like to offer any hope at this stage because the objections being made by the objecting countries were put forward fairly unequivocally. Nevertheless there is hope that movement might be got at the meeting of the EEC on 15 December. If movement can be got there it will have a strong influence on the ECMT because there was a compromise suggestion at the ECMT meeting that the ECMT meeting would accept — at the meeting of Deputies next January — any changes upwards that might be made by the EEC at their meeting in December.
When is the next meeting of the ECMT?
There is a meeting in January of Deputies who have been delegated to consider this.