Vol. 571 No. 1
1068 Mr. Crowe asked the Minister for Transport if his attention has been drawn to the recommendations from members of the European Parliament that taxi drivers who put their homes up as collateral for taxi plates should be compensated in full; and if he will reconsider his refusal to do so. [20584/03]
The Government has approved the implementation on a phased basis of the recommendations of the taxi hardship panel. This independent three-person panel was established to report in general terms on the nature and extent of extreme personal financial hardship that may have been experienced by individual taxi licence holders arising from loss of income as a direct result of the liberalisation of the taxi market. The report of the taxi hardship panel recommended the establishment of a scheme to provide payments to individual taxi licence holders who fall into one of six categories that the panel assessed as having suffered extreme personal financial hardship arising from taxi liberalisation. Category 5 of the report refers to particular circumstances where large loan repayments are outstanding and these have been secured against a family home.
I am aware of the report of the EU Committee on Petitions in relation to its fact-finding mission to Ireland in connection with the effects of taxi liberalisation. As I have explained previously in the House, based on legal precedent there can be no legal duty on the State to compensate taxi licence holders in relation to open market licence values that may have existed prior to liberalisation. This position remains unchanged and I have no proposals for any payments beyond the total recommended by the panel report.
