‘We are what keeps this country rolling’: Hauliers call for solutions to fuel crisis

The Government has been urged to "think outside the box" in terms of finding solutions to the ongoing and worsening fuel crisis, according to the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA).

Ger Hyland, IRHA president, has said temporary measures taken to ease fuel prices have already been "swallowed up" by subsequent hikes in the price of oil, leaving the country's motorists back "where they were a week ago," the Irish Examiner has reported.

He added that while an end to the current Middle East situation is the most necessary action to relieve the growing crisis, the Government will need to consider extreme measures, such as a potential cap on fuel prices, to see the nation through the worst.

However, he insisted that, from a negotiating point of view,  relations with the Government remain good.

“We negotiated with Government, and while we were hoping for more (in terms of excise cuts) and didn’t get it, the door remains open, and we would hope to get back in to speak again this week," he told the Irish Examiner.

While the cuts by the State had brought prices down somewhat at forecourts across the country, where the cost of diesel had risen as high as €2.30 per litre, about 60 cents higher than the national average as recently as January, multiple sources from within the motoring industry told the paper that they expect a further hike in prices.

It could be up as much as 15 cents per litre by Tuesday, leaving the Government’s cuts floundering in the wake of rapid inflation.

More than 50 per cent of the cost of petrol and diesel in Ireland results from excise costs and levies such as Vat and the carbon tax.

The Department of Transport deferred to the Department of Finance on foot of queries from the Irish Examiner as to whether or not last week’s excise cuts had achieved satisfactory results as far as the Government was concerned.

A request for comment by the paper from the Department of Finance had not been responded to at the time of publication.

Tánaiste Simon Harris on Monday defended the Government’s actions, saying that no administration could or should be expected to cover all the costs of such a crisis.

That argument has not found much sympathy among hauliers, however.

Hyland acknowledged that his organisation had already informed the Government that meetings between the two sides would become a weekly occurrence as long as the Middle East conflict continues.

“That was our discussion with Government, and they were amenable to it,” he said, noting that the Government “is under huge pressure today from every industry and organisation”.

He said that it is "time now" to suspend carbon tax, and "do whatever needs to be done to support our industry, especially as we are what keep this country rolling.

“Whether that means the Government puts a cap on the price of fuel until this crisis is over, maybe that’s a consideration. We need to be thinking outside the box here.”

It comes as the International Monetary Fund warned that the limited amount of oil, gas and fertiliser making its way out of the Gulf due to the war in the Middle East will lead to "higher prices and slower growth worldwide."

The Washington-based organisation has said a rise in energy and food costs would harm economic growth around the world this year and could leave lasting scars on the economy.

Latest official data for Ireland indicates that the price of energy jumped by 11 per cent in March alone, while overall inflation has climbed to 3.6 per cent, up from 2.5 per cent in February, The Irish Times reported..

Coming only hours after US president Donald Trump threatened to “obliterate” Iran’s energy infrastructure unless it agreed to a peace deal, the IMF’s analysis is likely to be viewed as a warning to the White House over the war’s lasting consequences for struggling households.

“If Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Supreme Leader of Iran kissed and made up at lunchtime today, we would still have a problem going on for a long period of time, months, possibly years because five percent to 10 percent of the world's global refining capacity has been impacted by the war,” the chief executive of Fuels for Ireland Kevin McPartland has said.

Every attack on a refinery or a terminal is adding up the delays, he told Newstalk Breakfast.

For every attack there will be pipes and machinery that will have to be rebuilt, all of which takes a long time, he said.

McPartland added that supply and prices were two different issues. At present supply was not an issue, but the issue was “can we afford it?” This was going to be an issue for a long time, he warned.

He did not think rationing was likely. “I recognise that high fuel prices are really hurting people, but Ireland is a wealthy country. We're in a far better situation than a lot of others because for at least a period of time, cash will be king. If we can afford it, we can get it.” - Additional reporting from Vivienne Clarke

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