As the Deputy may be aware, my Department operates a travel policy which states clearly that officers should only use taxis when it is absolutely necessary and there is no cheaper method of public transport available. That is adhered to within my Department. The total expenditure by the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport on taxi fares in the past two years to date is set out in the following table:
Year
|
From
|
To
|
Amount
|
2015
|
January
|
December
|
€9,284
|
2016
|
January
|
December
|
€9,616
|
2017
|
January
|
July
|
€5,312
|
As you can see, the spend in 2017 to date indicates that my Department is on course to maintain a consistent low level of expenditure on taxis.