Greens' transport budgets dominate talks with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil

Government formation talks hit a stumbling block today after Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil disagreed with the Greens’ demand for the cycling and walking budgets. It is also believed now that a draft programme for government will not be available for party leaders next week, as was hoped.

There was also dispute over the Greens’ push for a two to one ratio spend on public transport versus roads and whether the annual €1bn in road maintenance costs would form part of the latter.

Transport is a key area for the Greens and in particular their urban TDs, after the election. But Fine Gael and Fianna Fail are reluctant to loosen spending on roads as part of the estimated €2.7bn annual transport budget

It has been confirmed that the Greens want to reinstate the flight tax and party sources said this would come in at €3. But sources emphasise that this would be when the aviation sector is back to normal — if and when the Covid-19 pandemic passes.

An Air Travel Tax was introduced in Ireland in 2009, starting at €2 per passenger for short flights and €10 for long-haul and it applied to aircraft carrying 20 or more passengers, raising €150m a year. It was rounded to a €3 flat rate in 2011 and scrapped in 2014.

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are reluctant to agree to the fresh charge for passengers, which airlines could warn may cripple services even more.

But the Greens insist the new levy could help pay for sustainable travel elsewhere, such as greenways and cycling: “If the money can’t come from the transport budget, maybe it can come from elsewhere.”

Such a levy would likely be a decision for the Finance Minister in the next government and therefore out of the control of Transport.

Meanwhile, the parties clashed on road maintenance costs and whether they are included in the actual roads budget or come under public transport too.

There is a push-back from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael on the Greens’ keenness for a two-to-one split on public transport spending versus investment in new roads.

But the Greens are adamant that old and new contracts for roads could be halted. A Green negotiator said: “The spend on roads is not well spent.”

It is understood that all three parties were in agreement on tourism and sports budget planning and initiative, with all sides agreeing that longer stays for tourists coming here will need to be a priority.

“People are just not going to take risks for city breaks, there will be longer stays now,” said an informed source.

It is also understood that the Greens are pushing for grants and funding for E-bikes, in part on the basis that the elderly and disabled can enjoy cycling.

But the transport talks broke off this morning without conclusion. Agriculture talks next week are also expected to be fraught. Negotiating TDs said yesterday that a deadline of next Friday for a deal to be handed over to the three party leaders could be missed.