This week, Dublin Bus announced it is back to pre-pandemic passenger levels. That places Ireland ahead of the international curve with places like the Netherlands and Canada still at 70%. There are, however, pressures on the system and both Dublin Bus and the private operators who appeared at the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications said they are having issues with recruitment and meeting service levels. Will the Government continue to put pressure on the people who have put themselves forward to carry out these contracts to deliver the services, so people can get to work? People are experiencing delays with buses which are full passing them by. Can these issues be resolved so we can get back to the situation where we are able to provide basic bus services for people who need to travel?

I thank Deputy McAuliffe. This is a very serious issue for many people. As the Deputy rightly said, public transport use is back to pre-pandemic levels. We want to ensure we are investing in public transport. It is a better way for people to travel. There are issues with recruitment and filling of vacancies, which have been raised. We have also had significant complaints in respect of buses not turning up or, in fact, turning up late. We in government will do everything we can to support both Dublin Bus and private operators to ensure they have the human resources they need to provide the services the citizens of Dublin need.