Joe Higgins
Ceist:260 Mr. Higgins (Dublin West) asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason the carriage office has ceased to inspect vehicles for the purposes of issuing taxi plates in the Dublin taximeter area; if his attention has been drawn to the twofold distress that this delay is causing to those applicants who have purchased vehicles in the expectation that they would be able to gain plates within the normal parameters, and furthermore those people who wish to make use of wheelchair accessible taxis, in view of the fact that these taxis comprise of the main body of plates pending; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3433/98]