DoE admits busmanwas right on EU law

Last year the Sentinel was the only newspaper to cover Mr Leonard’s battle to protect his business from the encroachment of southern firms.

The DoE told the Sentinel then that the practice was kosher but Mr Leonard insisted it breached arcane ‘cabotage’ regulations that deal with haulage and bus transport in the EU.

His campaign culminated in a petition to the Vice-President of the EU Commission, Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas, over the monopolisation of local school transport contracts by Donegal firms.

Mr Leonard argued that under EU directive EC 1073/2009 there may have been grounds for refusing Donegal firms if a service seriously affected the viability of a comparable service here operated under one or more public service contracts.

The DoE told him he was wrong but now Mr Attwood - after taking extensive legal advice - has admitted he was right and has moved to close the legal loop hole.

Mr Leonard claimed up to 90 per cent of Western Education and Library Board (WELB) private hire Home to School transport tenders in Londonderry and its hinterland from Strabane to Claudy were held by ROI firms.

The Federation of Passenger Transport NI (FPTNI) also estimated that at least 50 schools in the Londonderry area use firms from across the border and that this is threatening to put local operators out of business.

Back in September Mr Leonard told the Sentinel the local Home to School market was sewn up by southern firms and argued this could be in breach of a European Commission (EC) ‘cabotage’ directive which governs the operation of the international market for bus and coach hire services in the EU.

Under EU law ‘cabotage operations’ are national road passenger services for hire and reward carried out on a temporary basis by a carrier in a host member state or the picking up and setting down of passengers within a host state.

Mr Leonard said EU directive EC 1073/2009 says there may be grounds for refusal if a service seriously affects the viability of a comparable service operated under one or more public service contracts.

Now - after taking extensive legal advice - Environment Minister Alex Attwood has admitted the current practice does not comply with European Law.

He said that as the DOE is responsible for regulating this activity he has moved to find a solution to the problem in order to give certainty to schools, parents and bus operators, working closely with the Department of Education (DE).

The steps being taken are to ensure safety and compliance with the law, to protect users, not least children. In addition, the Minister will continue to further determine from the EU Commission, working with Dublin and London, their interpretation of the law and advice.

Mr Attwood’s guidance clarifies the position when a non-NI bus operator provides a service where the passengers are fully transported within Northern Ireland, an activity known as cabotage. This includes school transport in Northern Ireland being provided by bus operators from the Republic of Ireland.

Mr Attwood said: “My primary concern is, and has to be, to ensure that all bus journeys in Northern Ireland are safe and comply with all relevant laws. This is a complex area.

“I have therefore issued advice to clarify the position for people hiring buses, bus operators, parents and the public. The result will be that operators from the South will have to register in the North. If this is done then southern operators will be able to work or continue to work in the North.

“I have made this judgement at all times with the primacy of children’s safety and parents needs in mind. I have also discussed this with my Ministerial colleague in Dublin, Minister Varadkar.

“I recognise that there are arrangements in place where bus operators from the Republic of Ireland provide services in the North, changes to these arrangements may cause concern, particularly in schools.

“I want to make the process of ensuring operators comply with the legislation as easy and straightforward as possible. My Department will work closely with them, helping to guide them through the steps that need to be taken to ensure appropriate arrangements are put in place. We will also work closely with them regarding new licences and any issues they have about setting up operations in Northern Ireland.

“I am also engaging with the Irish Government to make sure that the same principles are applied for northern operators working in the South. I am also working with the Irish and British Governments and the European Commission to ensure the fullest clarity on all of these issues.”

The announcment marks a U-turn from what the Department told the Sentinel last September when this was the only paper to report on Mr Leonard’s campaign.

A DoE spokesperson told us: “The carriage of school children along a specified route by an ROI operator is defined as a Special Regular Service. ‘Special Regular Services’ means regular services, by whomsoever organised, which provide for the carriage of specified categories of passengers to the exclusion of other passengers.”

The spokesperson added: “The rules that govern access to the international market for coach and bus services are laid down under Regulation (EC) No 1073/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009.

“This rules, which fully comes into effect on 4th December 2011, provides that freedom to provide services constitutes a basic principle of the common transport policy and requires that carriers from all Member States be guaranteed access to international transport markets without discrimination on grounds of nationality or place of establishment.”

But this was wrong, as Mr Attwood now admits that.

If organisations have questions, they should contact the Driver and Vehicle Agency Road Transport Licensing Division on 028 9025 4129.