Vol. 491 No. 7
103 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she has satisfied herself that the rapidly growing road haulage industry is being regulated adequately; and the plans or proposals, if any, she has in this regard. [13193/98]
104 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the number of staff within her Department dedicated to ensuring compliance with the road haulage licensing regime; and the number of additional staff allocated to this area in the context of her Department's recent campaign to reduce illegal road haulage activity. [13194/98]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 103 and 104 together.
Road haulage activities in the member states of the European Union are regulated in accordance with EU directives. Under Irish law, made pursuant to those directives, all applicants for a road freight carriers licence must comply with the following criteria while their licence remains in force.
They must be of good repute; be of appropriate financial standing: a licence holder must hold a current tax clearance certificate and show that it holds at least 3,000 ecu in capital and reserves per vehicle to be operated by the business; and satisfy the condition of professional competence: a licence holder must hold a certificate of professional competence qualification to manage the business.
An amending directive, currently being considered by the institutions of the European Union and likely to come into effect in late 1999, will see a significant raising of the criteria for road haulage licensing. In particular, the level of capital and reserves required to be held by a licensee will be increased.
A major consultancy review of the road haulage sector in Ireland is currently under way and is likely to be concluded towards the end of this year. The terms of reference for the review include consideration of the adequacy of the current national and EU legislative and regulatory environment. I will give careful consideration to any recommendations concerning the regulation of the sector which impact on my Department's responsibilities.
My Department has 31 staff engaged in the regulation of the road haulage industry, of which an inspectorate of nine transport officers and four support staff is engaged full time in the detection and prosecution of breaches of the tachograph regulations and offences under the Road Transport Acts. The recent campaign launched against illegal road haulage activities was successfully undertaken with the existing complement of staff. The Garda Síochána also enforce regulatory requirements relating to the haulage sector.
