Darragh O'Brien
Dublin Fingal East · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“The appropriate next time to do that is once the ANCA decision is finalised and the public consultation is concluded, which will be on 3 September. Obviously, there will be a period required after that when the submissions to ANCA will be looked at. That is where the consultation is. That will happen over the coming months.”
“I have already mentioned the more than 3 million passengers who flew through Cork Airport and the growth of Shannon Airport, which has just had its best half a year and which now has over 40 routes. However, a small number of people are impacted and they need to be listened to.”
“Others did not want it at all. I think Shane Ross was Minister for transport at the time. That has been done. That is in place. This decision will be made. I do not have a timeframe. Hopefully it will be soon after the submissions from the public on the draft noise decision is made. That would feed into both.”
“An Investec report published in, I believe, 2022 said that to maintain the cap at 32 million between now and 2030 would jeopardise up to about 19,000 jobs. That is the reality of it. I support the workers in the airport. I am from the community myself. The airport has to grow in a sustainable way.”
“I have also made it clear that even though, and this is a fact, international aviation emissions are outside the scope of the climate action plan, we are taking actions aligned with the global approach to decarbonisation of the aviation industry, which is based on the International Civil Aviation Organization's basket of measures to ensur…”
“I have already highlighted the planning decision on the DAA’s infrastructure application. We discussed that at some length over the course of the last nearly two hours. That application seeks to raise the passenger cap to 40 million and provide for much-needed additional infrastructure at Dublin Airport.”
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“Senator Clonan has mentioned the reality of the size of our own sphere of influence and our own airspace and how one could even monitor and police that. Exemptions are sought from time to time. They are published. Details of the number of exemptions that are granted are published and the refusal rate is published. I have outlined here to the Seanad that we have not seen a significant increase between 2023 and 2024. All of them are looked at. They come up to the relevant section and would be looked at where an issue is flagged. The reason for a refusal would be strongly considered by me as Minister. I see no reason to grant an exemption for any munitions to be transported through Ireland to Israel but there is a reality about how one could actually enforce this legislation if it were passed as it is.”
“It simply relates to the legality of the Bill, in that it provides that exemptions must not be granted if any of the three conditions provided for are met. These relate to items destined for Israel, items with a significant likelihood of being deployed by Israel, and applications made where items are destined for or coming from a country which exports similar items. There is a lack of clarity and overlapping across different pieces of legislation which could prevent provisions in this section from achieving the intended objective. No one wants munitions. There has been no application for munitions landed in Ireland with a destination point in Israel. We have to be straight and honest with people.”
“It is unlikely that the first automatic refusal would ever be implemented based on what I have here at the moment. There are certainly questions of enforceability and there are other issues. Department officials have looked through the Bill. The former Minister, former Deputy Ryan, my predecessor, sought a timed amendment on this to allow further examination of the legislation. That is under way. I know at this stage the Committee Stage will pass, with Report and Final Stages scheduled for another time. I cannot see a situation right now where the Bill, as currently constructed, could be implemented or supported in its current guise by the Government. I want to be very clear with Senators on that. That is not a criticism of the motivations for bringing forward that Bill.”
“Something I take very seriously, and I say this as Minister for Transport, having been in the House for one previous debate in this role but also with my other Department, is that any allegations of breaching the law in Ireland on the transit of weapons are being investigated. I take them very seriously. Exemptions are granted in the main and the manner I have said. We have seen the incidence of the carrying of munitions decrease between 2022 and 2023 and it remained relatively static between 2023 and 2024. There was an increase of ten exemptions in 2024 according to the most up-to-date figures I have. There are other matters within the legislation. People talk about weapons going to Israel. Since October 2023, no exemptions have been applied for or granted for the carriage of munitions of war destined for a point in Israel as such.”
“They are not coming through our airspace in any way, shape or form. I understand completely the motivations of the Senators who authored the Bill but there are legitimate questions to be asked, such as if this Bill were passed as it is, how we could enforce it. I also note the specific mention of one particular country. We have a regime that deals with all armaments that fly through or land and fly on to other destinations. There is a regime in place, and the Senators know the existing legislation that is in place, but there would be a genuine concern about how this provision, if this legislation were passed as it is, could be implemented. It would put a legal obligation on the State to do something it cannot do.”
“I have looked into the detail of these as well. The applications for exemptions predominantly fall into two categories, and some Senators have mentioned this. They include US civil air operators contracted to carry US military personnel with unloaded personal-issue weapons that require exemption if they operate in Irish sovereign territory, including overflights - that is one major part - at 33,000 to 35,000 ft, and scheduled flights in Europe by Irish-registered aircraft operating outside of Ireland. Senator Craughwell has mentioned, and he is correct, that if you look at Ireland being a world leader in aircraft leasing and the registration of aircraft that could be flying between France and Norway but are registered Irish, exemptions would be sought by some airlines because of the existing legislation that is in place.”
“We had to follow process. In my opinion, and I respect all the Senators who have spoken, it is not correct to say that our State is complicit in some way, shape or form. We are not, in my view. We have been really clear and our people have been really clear in our condemnation of Israel's continued bombardment of Gaza and continued grabbing of land in the West Bank. I will put a couple of items on the record of the House because there have been points made with regard to the increase in exemptions. I am not saying that speakers were trying to link them but there has been a correlation between the events of 7 October and further increases in exemptions. There was the initial Hamas attack on Israel and the completely disproportionate Israeli response. There has been some correlation drawn about an increase in applications and exemptions.”
“As a result of the failure of previous peace accords and the failure to move forward with the two-state solution, we are now seeing a situation where it is hardly possible to see what viable Palestinian state could exist at this stage, unfortunately, with these actions still continuing. The Israeli bombardment of Gaza, the continued attack on the West Bank and the continued expansion of settlements are all to be roundly condemned. I have done so and Government colleagues have done so. We have done more than that, actually. The idea from some of the commentary this evening is that the Government has done nothing. That is not correct. We have rightly recognised the State of Palestine. We now have a Palestinian ambassador in Ireland. We joined the South African case when many others thought we were not going to do so.”
“That has been articulated by members of the Government, including the Taoiseach, right the way through, just as it was by the previous Government. It is important that we condemn outright the brutal attack by Hamas on Israel, the savage murder of innocent civilians and the taking of hostages. That also has to be condemned outright. I know all Senators here share my view on that. I will make one general point. The idea that the Irish State has done nothing, or is standing by doing nothing, is not correct at all. During my time in the Oireachtas since 2007, we have had many debates and discussions, unfortunately, on the problems in the Middle East and in particular with regard to Israel.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Chathaoirleach agus déanaim comhghairdeas léi as ucht a poist nua. Go n-éirí an t-ádh léi. I thank the Senators and it is a pleasure to be here this evening on Committee Stage of this Bill. The reason this Bill is on Committee Stage is that, as the Senators who sponsored the Bill will know, the timed amendment has elapsed and the Government is not opposing this Bill on Committee Stage. There is no mechanism to do so. There is a significant amount of work to be done. I will address a couple of issues. I will preface my remarks by saying that nobody in this House - no Oireachtas Member whom I know - is not absolutely horrified by what is happening in Gaza and the West Bank through Israel's disproportionate and brutal actions. Tens of thousands of people have been murdered, have been killed by the IDF.”
“-----the way her Deputies treated the Ceann Comhairle last week. The level of hatred and vitriol and the abuse the Ceann Comhairle had to put up with as she was discharging her duties correctly was absolutely reprehensible. I hope that, after ten weeks, the Deputies will get back to doing the work they are elected to do. Yes, they should hold the Government to account but they should also do their work.”
“On 22 January, Sinn Féin Members elected by their constituents to discharge their democratic mandate and constitutional duty to elect a Taoiseach obstructed us from electing a Taoiseach. This happened for the first time in 106 years, despite all of the challenges this State has faced since its foundation. God knows many of those challenges were brought about by members of that party over the decades. Since 22 January, the party has continued in that vein. This has not been about speaking rights. Let us be honest about it; this has been about populism and about Sinn Féin hoping and praying to capitalise on a political opportunity. However, the reality is that this country faces major challenges both internationally and domestically.”
“I listened with incredulity earlier to the arch-propagandist, arch-revisionist Mary Lou McDonald alleging a co-ordinated and concerted plan by the Government to silence the Opposition. Anyone looking in over the course of the past ten weeks would know that the only co-ordinated and concerted plan was the Opposition's plan. This was led by Sinn Féin. I note with some degree of disappointment and sorrow that it was aided and abetted by the Labour Party. That party was led by the nose in these debates to continue to disrupt, attack and undermine the workings of Dáil Éireann. This did not just begin last week. It has been Sinn Féin's approach since before the election and after it lost the election. It declared publicly that there would be opposition at all costs. We have seen what that means.”
“Aontaím le gach rud a bhí á rá ag an Teachta. Tuigim go bhfuil an scéim seo an-tábhachtach ar fad ar son na ndaoine i dTiobraid Árann. Tiocfaidh mé ar ais chuig an Teachta go luath nuair a bheidh nuacht nua agam faoi sin. Tá súil agam go mbeidh mé ábalta dul chun cinn a dhéanamh ar son na ndaoine i dTiobraid Árann, go háirithe leis na bóithre. Caithfidh mé bualadh le TII agus an chomhairle contae faoin scéim seo. Tiocfaidh mé ar ais chuig an Teachta tar éis an chruinnithe sin.”
“I thank the Deputy. He has strongly and passionately argued for this project. We will engage with TII around the feasibility of fast-tracking elements of the project, particularly the Tipperary town bypass. Other elements will require planning permission and to go through the process. We are committed to it, as the Deputy is. It will make a massive difference to residents in the area. If we can bypass Tipperary town, we can make the improvements I have mentioned to the public realm within the town. There will be opportunities for businesses and people to consider new enterprises in the area. We can improve the quality of life in the town centre. I assure the Deputy that I will stay engaged directly with him on the issue. I have taken on board what he said and will keep him informed of progress at each stage.”
“With regard to the fast-tracking of individual elements of the overall project, the delivery programme will be clearer once the current project phase has concluded. However, my officials will continue to engage with TII with regard to this project, including, I can assure the Deputy, on the feasibility of fast-tracking elements of the project such as the Tipperary town bypass. Subject to the Government's approval of the preliminary business case, the project will then proceed through the statutory processes, which will include an application for planning approval to An Bord Pleanála. It is expected that this application will be made in the first half of 2026.”
“There would also be scope for urban environment improvements and improvements to the public realm and facilities in towns and villages, particularly the Deputy’s own town in Tipperary. This would have a positive social benefit for residents and encourage walking and cycling in the area. The project is currently progressing through the design and environmental evaluation phase, during which detailed design of the project is undertaken, along with the preparation of land acquisition documentation and surveys. Transport Infrastructure Ireland has advised my Department that it is anticipated that this phase will conclude in the second half of this year, after which a preliminary business case will be submitted to my Department, as per the infrastructure guidelines.”
“Gabhaim míle buíochas leis an Teachta as ucht a chomhghairdis. I thank the Deputy for the question. This has long been a matter of concern to him and the people of Tipperary, particularly the residents of Tipperary town and those who use the N24. This project forms part of a 35 km improvement scheme for the N24 between Cahir in County Tipperary and Limerick Junction. The proposed project would include bypasses of Tipperary town and Bansha, enhance regional accessibility and improve connectivity between Limerick and Waterford. By removing through traffic from a number of towns, there would be greater safety for road users and increased capacity on the network for both public transport and freight traffic.”
“It means people have work and can take on people. It means they will see a pipeline of significant works. I am more than confident that we will see a very significant improvement in our road network over the term of this Government. We are determined to achieve this. I have already discussed with officials the need to examine the next phase of road projects with a view to funding on a multi-annual basis.”
“Earlier, when answering other questions, both the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, and I were talking about the genuine importance of delivery during the term of this Government. We have many plans and strategies. We have seen improvements in our road network but the focus has got to be on delivering on projects. The point the Deputy made on multi-annual funding for roads is one I agree with. It is not within my gift alone or that of the Minister of State, Deputy Canney, to provide the funding but we want to determine how we can advance it. It would give certainty to the part of the construction sector concerned, such that it could see a pipeline of work and scale towards doing what is required. That was my experience in the Department of housing. Multi-annual funding is important because it gives certainty regarding investment.”
“I do. I spent a fair bit of time with the Deputy in the region, including in Youghal and Castlemartyr. I met community groups too. I absolutely see the need for that. During the middle of the day, outside rush hour, you can see the level of traffic moving through. Colleagues and I have paid very particular attention to the submission I have received. I will be reviewing it. The Deputy has advocated extremely strongly on behalf of his community and constituents, and I want to see this project moving forward. I do not want to pre-empt any announcement because I need to consider the capital envelope we have in the round and how we will make the allocations, but the Deputy can be assured that the points he has made, not just this evening but continually and consistently, are well made and fully understood by me.”
“Cork County Council is preparing tender documents for the procurement of technical advisers to take the project through its next phases. This will include the selection of a preferred route option, along with detailed design and environmental evaluation. In 2024, this project received an allocation of €450,000. I assure the Deputy that the delivery of this project remains an absolute priority of the Government. As I have discussed with him directly and as I know he appreciates, I will be announcing the funding for 2025 very shortly.”
“The project would improve connectivity along the N25 corridor for all road users, including for freight traffic to the ports of Cork and Waterford and Rosslare Europort. The Deputy has advocated this very strongly. The project would also deliver quality-of-life improvements to the residents of Killeagh and Castlemartyr, reducing congestion, pollution and noise. This is in addition to the improvement in safety that would be provided for both villages. In 2022, my Department provided an allocation to Cork County Council to progress a strategic assessment report for the N25 Midleton–Youghal scheme. This was submitted to the Department in January 2023. The concept and feasibility phase is now approaching completion.”
“I thank the Deputy very much. I am aware that the progression of this project is of great interest to him and the local community. Indeed, I visited the area with him not so long ago and met community groups. The Government has earmarked €5.1 billion for capital spending on new national roads projects from 2021 to 2030 as part of the NDP. While the greater portion of this funding is to become available from 2026 to 2030, many road projects continue to be progressed. Projects already delivered in County Cork include the N22 from Baile Bhuirne to Macroom and the upgraded Dunkettle interchange. The N25 Midleton–Youghal scheme includes bypasses of the villages of Castlemartyr and Killeagh, which the Deputy mentioned.”
“Specifically on the action group Deputy Cullinane mentioned, I would be happy to interact with them if he forwards any correspondence he has to me.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis na Teachtaí. I am aware of how important this is. We will have national roads announcements in the coming weeks. I mentioned €4.8 million was allocated in 2024. Just two weeks ago, on 14 February, €23.6 million was also allocated to Waterford as part of the regional and local roads allocations. I am aware of the importance of the N25 and the N24, which Deputy McGrath mentioned and about which I spoke to him directly. That is a very significant road improvement scheme in the context of the whole network, involving approximately 60 km. It requires significant funding to move this on. There will be many competing projects within this year's programme. Within the past few days, I received a draft submission, which I intend to review in detail. I expect to make announcements in the coming weeks in this regard.”
“I have received contact from the chief executives as well, and from Deputies across all parties and none on this road infrastructure and the advancement of these projects, but no decisions have been made on these yet.”
“The Deputy is correct; we have discussed this privately. A number of Deputies are interested in this important project. In 2024, approximately €4.8 million was allocated to Waterford City and County Council, under the national roads network, for national roads in Waterford. Two major road projects of importance in Waterford are in the NDP, namely, the N24 and the N25, which is Waterford to Glenmore. I recently received a submission on national roads and future funding for that. I will assess that in the coming weeks. I see Deputy McGrath is coming in on this issue as well and I am aware many others are particularly focused on this project. I will certainly give it due consideration.”
“This is an area we can improve upon and I will look to accommodate that in the NDP review. It would be remiss of me to discuss transport infrastructure in Waterford without discussing the north quays project. I have no doubt the Deputy shares my belief - I know he does from our discussions on this - that this will be a truly transformative project for Waterford. From my perspective, it also highlights the type of projects that can be delivered through joined-up thinking and co-ordination across different Government funding sources.”
“In the wider county area, the Deputy will no doubt acknowledge the substantial progress already made in improving public transport under the Connecting Ireland programme. Connecting Ireland is introducing public transport to towns and villages in Waterford that have never had services before and enhancing service levels in those towns and villages that have services. I look forward to his continued support in that and seeing that progress over the coming years. On roads, we are supporting the council in the protection and renewal of the existing network and in delivering a new and improved network for the future. An area I will be looking at in the context of the review of the NDP will be to see how we can increase funding towards protection and renewal works, including climate adaptation.”
“I appreciate the question. The Government’s position on this issue is clear – we look forward to delivering improved transport and an improved transport network for the people of Waterford, and to continue that over the coming years. In the city area, those improvements will be introduced in line with the Waterford metropolitan area transport strategy, which sets out a plan-led, evidence-informed basis to improve active travel, public transport and road networks across the metropolitan area in the years ahead. A key component of the strategy will be rolling out BusConnects Waterford in the coming years, and I look forward to seeing that commence, which will build on the improvements introduced a few years ago.”
“Sometimes, it is about particular routes, which are being focused on by the operators, and particular times. My main focus will be, with the Deputy's support, on establishing a transport security force and rolling that out throughout the country.”
“The training to secure a licence for a vehicle such as that is standardised and obviously involves road testing and so on. I have not had any complaints about different driving styles across Bus Átha Cliath, Go-Ahead Ireland or Bus Éireann, but that is obviously the experience the Deputy's constituent had. On safety, Dublin Bus took the bull by the horns in running its pilot programme. We have expanded services. For example, Dublin Bus is running 24-hour buses in the city. I would like to see that expanded further. Transdev and Dublin light rail have 50 permanent security staff on our trains, but we have to be honest. While all of Go-Ahead's buses have cameras, as do all Dublin Bus buses and Bus Éireann, more people are using public transport than ever. That is good but they deserve to feel safe on those journeys.”
“It will take some time to legislate for that. We also need to continue to work with An Garda Síochána and to support the units within it because there is still an issue. I firmly believe that.”
“I was looking at the previous safety report and I was taken by the fact that 84% of respondents who were asked said that they felt safe on public transport. I am not disputing the numbers but I was quite surprised by that. It depends on the route. I use public transport. I am in the Dublin commuter zone. There are many other things that need to be done. On DART stations, I was pleased to see that there are 576 cameras on the network. There are 110 cab cameras that are monitored in real time at Howth Junction. On trains, Iarnród Éireann's security budget is €11.3 million in 2025. That has nearly doubled since 2023. That is good. I have seen that. I have also seen that Dublin Bus is operating a pilot programme in respect of private security on some Dublin Bus routes. It is without doubt that we need the transport security force.”
“In this regard, a public transport safety working group with representatives from all operators, the commercial bus sector, the NTA, unions, An Garda Síochána, the Department of Justice and passenger representative groups has been established. The work of this group will be closely linked to the implementation plan to improve safety for passengers travelling on the network that was developed by the NTA from its annual safety and security report. The 2024 report is expected to be published in the coming weeks. I will read it with interest. In my supplementary response, I will outline some other measures that are being taken. The previous Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, took some specific measures regarding transport hubs that are still in place.”
“To help tackle this critical issue, the programme for Government contains a strong commitment from the Deputy's party, my own and the regional Independents to create a transport security force under the National Transport Authority that would operate with similar powers to airport police and customs officers. I assure the Deputy that it is a priority. We have already started work in the Department to identify the legislation that will need to be brought forward and the powers this force will have. We continue to work closely with industry stakeholders to identify measures to improve passenger safety across the public transport network.”
“Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as ucht na ceiste tábhachtaí faoi shábháilteacht phaisinéirí ar iompar poiblí. As he will be acutely aware, antisocial behaviour is a broad societal issue to which public transport is unfortunately not immune. I have witnessed, as the Deputy will have in talking to his constituents, that this is a matter that really does need to be addressed. It is those passengers and staff who regularly use and work within the public transport network who are most directly impacted by any safety or security incidents that may occur on the network.”
“There have been changes made by the previous Minister for Justice as well with regard to Garda hubs in transport areas and that has been welcomed. That will be expanded. To answer the Deputy's question on where the transport security force would operate, I would see it operating initially on our rail and Luas lines. It will operate on buses, but we will need to scale it up. We will have to look at how we scale it up. We need to underpin it by legislation. Recruitment will also have to happen and An Garda Síochána will be a crucial part of it, but we are working on the establishment of the transport security force as we speak.”
“I thank the Deputy for giving me the opportunity to update him on this. It was a Green Party commitment in its manifesto. It was a Fianna Fáil commitment as well that we have a transport security force and transport police supported by colleagues in the programme for Government. Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the regional Independents have agreed that measure, and it is an important step forward that that be done. We are already working on it. We will require legislation. The transport security force will sit under the NTA. I will establish it. I have already had discussions with the Minister for Justice, Deputy O'Callaghan. I am waiting for options papers on that, but we have commenced the work already. The sooner it is the better, frankly.”
“They are dependent on the bus operators to key into their own apps and then it is fed into one. There will be a new system coming in early next year of one combined real-time data. That is a massive frustration because people cannot make a decision as to whether a bus is turning up or not, or on whether to try to change their journey.”
“I have impressed on the NTA the real importance of being customer and user focused. A lot of time is spent, and rightly so, on expanding our bus network and investing in infrastructure. However, existing routes need to be supported. I agree with the Deputy. The passenger or customer experience is critical to ensuring other people use public transport. Thankfully, because of the work done by the previous Government and the former Minister, Eamon Ryan, supported by the Deputy, and by me, in Cabinet, we are seeing significant increases in those using public transport. We want to see more, and we want to build on that success. Certainty around reliability is critical and so is real-time information. The TII live app has been a frustration for people too.”
“I understand that the company has an ongoing mechanics recruitment campaign recruitment campaign and is continuing to invest in an apprenticeship program to train new mechanics and it is considering further recruitment initiatives to strengthen its mechanic resources. Fundamentally the reliability of our bus services requires the type of bus priority measures we will introduce under BusConnects. This year will see construction start on the first of the BusConnects Dublin core bus corridors, with Liffey Valley and Ballymun-Finglas both expected to commence, and I look forward to the support of the House as we implement this transformative programme.”
“The NTA fully acknowledged that an inadequate level of service was provided on certain routes operated on their behalf by Go-Ahead Ireland in recent weeks and it has been working closely with that operator to rectify the situation. The Deputy probably knows this already, but I understand that the issues arose due to a shortage of mechanics within the Go-Ahead operations. Upon the occurrence of the issue, various remedial measures were taken by Go-Ahead, including bringing in additional mechanics from Britain and obtaining additional support from other sources. I have been advised that the situation has improved significantly and fleet availability within the Go-Ahead operations has now been restored to sufficient levels.”
“I am aware of the poor performance issues on certain routes operated by Go-Ahead in the greater Dublin area. I highlighted this myself. It was brought to my attention by many commuters. As the Deputy knows, public transport service obligations are provided by both State and commercial operators under contract with the National Transport Authority. I assure the Deputy that the performance of all these public transport operators is closely monitored by the NTA as part of contractual arrangements in place between it and the operators. I reassure the Deputy that I recently met with the NTA to discuss a range of public transport issues, including specifically these recent performance issues.”
“We want people to use public transport. It is good for many reasons and we are seeing significant increases in passenger numbers across all modes of public transport.”
“There were issues on certain routes in the past few weeks and I publicly stated they were not acceptable. I use this opportunity to restate to bus operators that paying customers - all customers indeed because many do not have to pay now due to the expansion of free travel - expect a reliable services. In many instances, that is exactly what they get. We will continue the investment in our bus fleet throughout the country, in our cities and regions and in rural transport as well. We will continue the investment in our rail network. We are seeing very significant investment and we will see further improvements in that this year and next. The national development plan review provides an opportunity to invest further capital in significant transport infrastructure to improve the lot of customers and users of public transport.”
“The Deputy said the contract should not have been awarded. Should the NTA cancel a contract on an existing service? What impact would that have on the road users or bus users in the area in question?”
“The Deputy has the answer, in that a very severe fine was levied. Public transport is not disimproving. We need to ensure punctuality. We have a growing population. There are developments all over the country that need to be serviced by the bus network. This year, €658 million has been provided for the PSO, up from €613 million the year before. We have seen a significant reduction in public transport fares. I will extend free fares to five- to eight-year-olds, a measure brought forward by the previous Minister. We will also look at how we can further improve the offering. People are responding. There were record passenger numbers last year and this year we must work hard to ensure they increase further. There were issues with that particular operator on certain routes. I raised those issues publicly and met representatives of the NTA.”
“Everybody understands there may be the odd instance where that does not happen but on certain routes we have seen that with too great a frequency. The NTA is carrying out a specific review of those incidents over the past few weeks, at my request, and will report directly back to me. In the instances we are aware of, the issue was due to a shortage of mechanics and the knock-on impact that had on fleet availability. That led to the recent issues on the newly launched phase 6a of BusConnects. We do not want to see this happening. We want more people to use public transport and, thankfully, they do. There were 330 million journeys made on public transport last year, so the figure is increasing and people are responding. The bus network is now better but we need to ensure the service is there to back it up.”