Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2025-12-11
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Ruth Coppinger (PBP), Dublin West

There are two things that need to happen. The drivers need to boycott Uber, and everybody here - TDs and other public figures - should say they will not use Uber because of what it is doing to these drivers. However, that is not sufficient, because we also need to legislate. Will the Government prohibit the use of algorithms to set fares and will it legislate to prohibit apps acting as third parties in negotiations on the fare between passengers and drivers? I am not saying they cannot negotiate, but negotiations would have to be done human to human. Will the Government conduct an urgent review of the app-based taxi fare models and their compliance with taxi regulations?
The Minister stated that the NTA said this was in accordance with the regulations. The apps are exploiting something whereby a driver can agree to take a lower fare from somebody who can only afford to pay, for example, €20 when it should be €25. A goodwill gesture, if you like, for a woman who might be stuck at night and is being brought home. That loophole is being used by these companies to bring in this fixed-fare model.
Will Government develop a publicly managed NTA taxi hailing app? Why rely on these massive corporations that are only interested in greed and profit to set the standards for public transport in this country?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2025-12-11/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-27T06:54:48+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-11