The fall in the number of taxis is having a detrimental impact on towns and villages across rural Ireland. In County Tipperary, according to the most recent figures, there has been a drop to just 220 taxis, despite a population growth of more than 4,000. This has an obvious negative impact on hospitality and retail services. Pubs and restaurants are struggling as people are forced to stay at home. Securing transport is also a major issue for people who need to get to medical and personal appointments or, in some cases, simply to get to their nearest town. Without a local taxi service, many people are left isolated at home or stranded if they leave home. This growing issue was brought to the Government's attention at the start of this year. There was an agreement to explore the existing prohibitive regulations that deter people from entering the taxi industry, particularly the onerous local knowledge test, which up to 75% of applicants failed. Considering that GPS can direct drivers to given locations, should that regulation be removed? What is the current position on that review?

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I will get him a specific answer from the Minister for Transport on this but the Government is very eager to take steps to increase the number of taxis and hackneys available nationally, particularly in rural areas. For a variety of reasons, these steps have not yielded the numbers so further actions are planned and some are under way. I will write to the Deputy in that regard but the Minister for Transport has recently written to the advisory committee on taxis and hackneys to request its consideration of how taxi availability can be assessed and to make recommendations on relevant data. A driver recruitment campaign ran on national radio and digital platforms and applicants for new vehicle licences can apply for funding under a variety of schemes. I will get a specific update for the Deputy on the regulation.