Minister rules out special help for the haulage sector

THE MINISTER for Transport Mr Dempsey has ruled out any special assistance for the haulage sector, following recent rises in the cost of oil.

While Mr Dempsey said he appreciated "the transport industry has been particularly hit" by wholesale prices of oil in excess of $130 a barrel, the Republic has some of the lowest rates of excise duty in the EU, meaning that truckers can still buy fuel cheaper here than in many other EU states.

Addressing the Oireachtas Committee on Transport he said the recent sharp increases in the price of oil was "obviously a huge concern for everybody".

The Minister revealed there had been discussions among European finance ministers which made it clear that reduced excise duties or taxes were not being contemplated in the current context. "That is something that would have to be considered at budget time from a finance point of view," he told the committee. On the subject of relief for hauliers, Mr Dempsey said, "it is argued that if one starts reducing tax rates as oil prices rise, including diesel, it is a further encouragement for people to keep putting prices up because the taxpayer and the Government will carry the can."

Irish Road Haulage spokesman Jimmy Quinn said the increases were probably a short-term spike, but argued they showed the fallacy that a carbon tax would work.

"The left lane of every motorway in Europe is a conveyor belt of goods, and that conveyor belt travels on wheels. If they are going to impose a carbon tax on that, everything will be cheaper in the centre and the regions will face the kinds of increased prices and deprivation they did in the past," he said.