At last, justice has been done over long-standing abuse of Section 19 permits. It’s happened thanks to a core of commercial operators that convinced the DfT to enforce EU Regulation 1071/2009, something that comes not before time.
Even so, the DfT has some explaining to do. Why did it take an EC infraction notice and the threat of a judicial review before it embarked on this U-turn?
The damage that the DfT’s failure to enforce a Regulation – something that Article 288 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU describes as “binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all member states” – has done to commercial businesses faced with cut-price competition for tenders has in some cases been extensive.
Will the DfT be held accountable for that? Probably not. But it should be.
Where now for community transport operators that rely on Section 19 and Section 22 permits and will shortly lose a big chunk of funding is not clear. They are in limbo until the government clarifies its plans later in the year, and as part of that process the sector requires strong leadership from its representatives. So far, it is not getting that.
So while it may be good news for O-Licenced operators, spare a thought for users of community transport who are now left wondering whether they will still have a service – any service – come the end of 2017.
