Hauliers give fuel price ultimatum
Militant action by lorry drivers is inevitable unless fuel prices are lowered, TDs were warned today.
The Irish Road Hauliers Association met the Dáil Committee on Enterprise and Small Business to outline their case for a fuel concession.
“We left them in the knowledge that unless there is action fast, they are storing up a lot of trouble,” spokesman Jimmy Quinn said.
“There is a lot of pressure on the organisation from our members to take militant action.”
The last budget imposed a five-cent increase in the tax on a litre of petrol and diesel.
Hauliers want this increase refunded to their members as long as fuel prices stay at their current level.
“At the moment, the increase is taking €25,000 a year off a fleet of 10 vehicles and we are not in a position to recover from that,” said Mr Quinn.
He said the increases in fuel prices were tempting some hauliers to use illegal diesel, leading to losses of revenue for the Government.
Last week, hauliers parked 10 trucks outside the Dáil in Dublin in a token protest. They are now planning a much larger protest in the city if their demands are not met.
“That is our last resort but we will be making our point and we will be entitled to stop work. It is a very real option at this stage,” said Mr Quinn.
The IRHA delegation told the committee that almost 90% of goods in Ireland are transported by road.
They also presented a number of proposals, including the abolishment of farm diesel, both in the Republic and Northern Ireland.
“Give farmers a rebate cheque based on acreage/usage,” their presentation document said.
“This would eliminate enormous exchequer losses, washing of diesel fuel and the subsequent black economy that funds paramilitaries. The dumping of chemical sludge with this process is also a menace to the environment.”
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