Why the Drive2Survive?
On the same issue but with regard to a
different group of people, I ask the
Taoiseach to support the chauffeur industry.
These are a group that have felt forgotten
about throughout this pandemic. They are
often the first and last point of contact of
overseas visitors to Ireland. They collect tourists
from the airports, and chauffeur them to
hotels, restaurants, festivals and tourism
locations across Ireland. Last week, they
organised a drive-to-survive from Killarney to
Donegal and from there to Dublin via Galway.
They mostly drive new, state-of-the-art vehicles
on which they have hefty loans and now find
themselves with no bookings, a situation which
is likely to continue well into 2022. Can the
Taoiseach request the relevant Minister to
meet with a delegation from the sector to
discuss their specific concerns for the future of
their industry and the Government supports
that they may be able to avail of? Can these
packages be available to the July stimulus Bill
to help this sector, which has been decimated
by the pandemic?
