Vol. 458 No. 5
101 Mr. Dempsey asked the Minister for the Environment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that, under current regulations in relation to public service vehicles, many people who currently hold hackney licences in newly designated taxi areas will be put out of business; and if he will consider amending the fifth schedule to the regulations to give greater weight in the points system to existing hackney owners. [17291/95]
I have no proposals at this stage to amend the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulations, 1995. These regulations provide that, where the number of applications for taxi licences in a new taximeter area exceeds the number of licences to be granted, an assessment based on a points system specifically designed for such areas is to be made. The system gives priority to holders of hackney lic ences providing a service in the area based on the number of years the licence has been held. Points are also available to holders of licences to drive public service vehicles, and to holders of ordinary driving licences.
The creation of a taximeter area and the determination of the number of taxi licences to be granted are matters for the decision of the members of the local authority concerned.
