Verona Murphy, the president of the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA), has strongly condemned a report from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), calling for an increase in the cost of diesel for hauliers.

The IRHA president has described the report commissioned by the EPA, as "clueless and bereft of even the most basic insight or understanding of the haulage industry and its use of diesel fuel".

“It appears that the ESRI want us to go back to horse’s carts and canal barges as the solution to transporting goods in Ireland,” Murphy said.

Currently, the Government ensures that the price of diesel is lower than petrol, but the report claims that by raising the excise duty on diesel, the Government could raise up to €522m and cut transport sector carbon emissions by 2.4% a year.

Carbon emissions

However, Murphy stated that the report did not take into account moves already taken by the haulage industry to mitigate its impact on carbon emissions, or its role in local employment.

“There are approximately 3,700 licensed haulage operators at present in Ireland. The sector supports 50,000 jobs directly and through ancillary services, accounting for approximately 2.5% of total employment in the Irish economy.

“The modern haulage truck engine is specially fitted to take a fuel cleaning additive, known as Ad Blue.

“This is an additional cost to the haulier, at €1/litre, and results in lower emissions from that engine than a 1.6-litre petrol motor car.”

The IRHA president concluded by stated that the organisation intended to write to the ESRI to seek for it to withdraw and revise itsir report.

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