71. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Transport if he will defer the January 2026 toll increase; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63433/25]
Sentiment score: 0.02
From the eye-watering price of petrol and diesel to the spiralling cost of insurance, drivers are being hammered with skyrocketing costs at every turn. I ask the Minister of State if he will defer the January 2026 toll increase and if he will make a statement about it. It is a clear political choice from Government, the Ministers and all their supporters. Will the Government have the same courage of its convictions as it did before the elections, when the Minister himself called for the toll charge increases to be scrapped?
Sentiment score: 0.30
I hear the Minister of State's response but it is very disappointing because he, the Government and the Minister over in Brazil are trying to wash their hands of it. However, the general public and the voters will see right through this because during the last general election campaign, the Minister himself called for the toll hikes to be scrapped. Has there been a change of mind since then or was it never really meant by the Government? Was it another broken promise in the run-up to the election? Denying responsibility is not going to satisfy people. They know that the Government has the power to stop this because a previous Government did it. In a rare move in 2023, the then Government actually listened to the Sinn Féin proposals and deferred the toll increases from that January for a period of six months. While that sticking plaster type response did not go far enough, it was better than what the Government is currently planning, which is putting more burdens on drivers already crippled by some of the highest prices for petrol, diesel and insurance in Europe.
Sentiment score: -0.22
The Minister of State has not answered the question about deferring the tolls and whether the Government is going to do that. It has the power to do it and there are other measures it can also take to cut the cost of living and the spiralling costs for drivers. We outlined these in a Private Members’ Bill last week, which we will be voting on tomorrow evening. The progress that was spoken about in the response last week is as absent as the countermotion, which was supposed to be issued last week, but which never materialised when we were in here in the Chamber. Is it progress that the Government is standing by while the insurance companies rip people off? Is it progress that the Government punishes drivers who, for whatever reason cannot afford to pay their motor tax upfront and pay it in instalments? Is it progress to hike up the cost of petrol and diesel through the carbon tax increases, which some people in the Minister of State’s Government do not even believe that they have anything to do with? These are hitting lower income and rural drivers who rarely have an alternative option.
Sentiment score: 0.05
72. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Transport if he will report on the scheme for free travel for five- to eight-year-olds; if he will report on the roll-out of the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63434/25]
Sentiment score: 0.18
If the Minister for Transport was here, I would ask him to report on the scheme for the free travel for five- to eight-year-olds. I would also ask him to report on the roll-out of the scheme. This has been heralded for a long time. I do not know how much money was spent on it or what testing was done but there have been problems with it. We have had complaints that the cards do not actually work. There seems to be problems on both Bus Éireann and Iarnród Eireann services. What is the Government doing to address them?
Sentiment score: -0.12
It is true we in Sinn Féin support this measure but it has to work in practice. I agree it is good there have been 25,000 cards and agree on the gathering of data to ensure public transport is available to more children and citizens into the future. However, the roll-out has not been going to plan. First of all, it took about a year to get it off the ground and the scheme was not officially launched until September. Even worse, some of the cards required to access the scheme do not work. Parents have contacted us to say not only does their child's Leap card not work but many bus drivers had not heard of the scheme. That is hardly a ringing endorsement of a successful roll-out. The NTA has confirmed to us there are problems with the scheme and has claimed the issues will be resolved when a fix is found and proper testing carried out. How is the Minister of State planning to do that? Why was this situation not anticipated and dealt with before September?
Sentiment score: 0.12
The Minister of State mentioned introducing subsidised public transport services. I want to raise the issue of rural children being excluded from the scheme because it has not been extended to commercial operators. At a recent appearance at the transport committee, David Conway from the Coach Tourism and Transport Council of Ireland said his operators are excluded from the scheme. He found that surprising given they are included with some other elements. Our heavy reliance on commercial transport operators in rural areas is maintained because public transport has not been expanded over the years as it should have been. As a result of this failure and lack of planning, some parents and children have no choice but to use a commercial operator. They were included in the young adult fare scheme but have not been included in this. That is the call from that organisation and from many people in rural Ireland who are obliged to use the commercial operators.
Sentiment score: -0.11