Vol. 530 No. 3
32 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will report progress on the establishment of a greater Dublin transport authority; and the way in which the public transport procurement agency and public transport regulation body fit into its remit. [3826/01]
The cross-departmental team on infrastructure and public private partnerships has prepared detailed proposals for changes in the institutional arrangements relating to land use and transport in the greater Dublin area. In particular, the team has considered how better co-ordination can be achieved in relation to strategic land use planning, transportation planning and the regulation of public transport. These proposals have been considered by the Cabinet committee and will be brought to Government shortly. Subject to Government approval, it is proposed to publish these proposals in a consultation paper and to seek comment from interested parties.
It is envisaged that the Railway Procurement Agency will have a clearly focused role in ensuring the timely delivery of appropriate rail infrastructure and services. While most of the work of the Railway Procurement Agency is likely to be focused on the greater Dublin area, it will have a national mandate and will be a procurement rather than a regulatory body. It will be expected to operate within a regulatory framework set by the body exercising regulatory functions. This will be addressed in greater detail in the proposed consultation paper.
I wish to join with my colleagues in expressing sympathy to the Minister. This is the first opportunity I have had to do so, although I am aware she was in her office and at her desk early last week. I want to say how much I admire her courage and commitment in returning so quickly to work. I welcome her back to the Chamber.
On the institutional arrangement for transport, it is now universally recognised that the fact that more than two dozen bodies are responsible for transport in Dublin is probably the single biggest cause of the traffic problems in the city. It is recognised that the dispersal of responsibilities does not just result in a lack of co-ordination but causes failure in the delivery of services because it has been too easy for agencies to pass the buck to one another. As everyone knows, when everyone is responsible, no one is responsible and, against that background, it seems folly to proceed with the setting up of further agencies without attempting to pull all the existing agencies together. I can understand the need for a regulatory and procurement function but surely it is necessary to put a single body in place to deal with all these functions.
I agree with the Deputy in relation to the regulatory body and the procurement function, which is a mechanical aspect. The point about the multiplicity of agencies is no longer relevant because people want an agency which will deliver proper land and transport planning. The Cabinet infrastructural committee considered the issue last Thursday and when the consultation paper emerges, there will be much greater clarity on the matter. The Deputy's points are well made and proper to the debate. I hope the input from people into the consultation document will lead to a proper body taking the decisions.
Will the Minister accept that while her statements, including those of the Minister for the Environment and Local Government and the Taoiseach, point to a single transport authority with a land use dimension, decisions are being made that directly contradict that objective and we are actually adding to the number of agencies that already exist. These include the Rail Procurement Agency, which is to be set up soon, the regulator body for buses, the shadow regulat ory body for buses, the unit being set up in the Minister's Department and the innumerable consultancies that have been commissioned. This problem does not just relate to the Minister's Department but to other Departments with a transport remit. The partnership forum and the Dáil committee are carrying out studies. Is there a danger that the Minister and the Government are losing sight of the wood for the trees? Will she accept that the overriding imperative is to have a single transport body which can get a handle on all the issues for which agencies already exist? The view in Government and among the public seems to be that the Dublin traffic problem cannot get any worse. I believe it can get much worse unless a single body takes a handle on the matter. Will the Minister accept that the fact that no one in Government and no agency is performing the single function of regulating traffic is at the root of our problems and that the problems will get worse if we keep ignoring this fact?
Yes, that is what we are doing. The land use and transport body would act both as transport authority and public transport regulatory body for the greater Dublin area. The Cabinet is due to take the decision on that shortly and the consultation paper will be released. The partnership forum in the Department, which involves management, unions and the Department, is a separate body. It was set up under the PPF and is performing a good function. I do not envisage it being in any way disruptive of traffic; the reverse is true.
