asked the Minister for Finance if he will state on how many occasions since the 1st January, 1953, Departments of State have hired private road haulage vehicles for the carriage of furniture or other merchandise and why the services available in the national transport undertaking, C.I.E., are not used on all such occasions by Departments of State.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Road Haulage.
It would be quite impracticable to examine the thousands of cases in which haulage work was undertaken for Departments of State since 1st January, 1953, in order to extract the information requested by the Deputy. I am informed, however, that Departments generally use the services of C.I.E. where available but private hauliers are sometimes engaged because, in the opinion of the Department concerned, they are more suitable or convenient having regard to such considerations as cost and the special needs of the particular occasion.
Having regard to the fact that the national transport organisation is very heavily subsidised by theState, does the Minister not consider it advisable that all matters of transport should be done by and through C.I.E.? I would further ask the Minister if tenders were asked for the job to which I am referring, the taking of furniture into the new office in Store Street?
That is a separate question.
Is the Minister satisfied that the job should be given outside of the national transport organisation to any private concern?
Was the national transport concern consulted, and is there not an obligation on the Board of Works, which is the responsible Department, to invite tenders for such work?
I am sure that the Minister bore in mind the importance of giving work to the national transport organisation, but, as I have stated, in particular cases it may happen that convenience and other reasons compel the Minister to seek alternative methods. If the Minister in a particular case had recourse to a firm of private hauliers, he had experience of their work in the past and was satisfied that in the particular circumstances it was the most convenient and best way to secure the accomplishment of the work which he had in view—in fact he was satisfied that no other course was possible if the records of the Department were to be transferred in such time as to enable the work of the Department of Social Welfare to be carried on without any break or any confusion.
Is it not desirable that work of this kind should be carried out by reputable furniture removers rather than by people who run turf lorries?
Does the Minister for Industry and Commerce subscribe to the view just announced by the Minister for Lands that C.I.E. would not be competent to carry out this work?
That is a separate question.
I was going to ask the self-same question.
I suppose he is one of the Party hacks.