This report deals with a number of the Commission's proposals relating to public service transport. The Sub-Committee felt initially that they might have more immediate political significance. As we proceeded with the help of a brief from the Department and considered the subject matter of the proposals we found that they are fairly technical and not of sharp immediate political significance for the Committee. However, I will summarise them.
The first relates to the question of national aids and public service transport and it is a draft Regulation proposing to amend two earlier Council Regulations which deal with the compensation of transport operators by the Member States in respect of operations which they carry out in the public service but which are not commercially justifiable. There was considerable discussion in Sub-Committee about whether this applies to, for example, free travel for old age pensioners. This is met in a different way under our system and payment is made by the appropriate Department. It is not a question of requiring CIE to run a non-commercial service in these circumstances. Therefore, this does not come under the heading of this type of provision for national aid. The departmental view is that this type of aid was not what was covered by the draft Regulation. We did have a submission from CIE and the effect of that is summarised in paragraph 7 of this report which states:
CIE supports the proposal because it sees in it a recognition of the principle that there should be proper compensation for obligations of a public service nature. It considers that the machinery provided by Regulation No. 1191/69 is sufficiently comprehensible and flexible and it welcomes its extension. Paragraph 8 states:
The Joint Committee is advised, however, that it is not envisaged that the proposed Regulation would have any practical consequences for Ireland. The extended definition of " tariff obligation " under the proposed Regulation would continue to exclude obligations arising from general measures of price policy applying to the economy as a whole, so that control of CIE's fares and rates under the Prices Acts would not constitute a tariff obligation. . . .
Therefore, in effect, we were faced with quite a difference of approach. There appears to be a welcome from CIE for this recognition of the social implications of the type of obligations, but in the way in which we approach that problem we are not much affected by the main Regulation.
The second measure relates to carriage of goods by road for hire or reward. This matter has been regulated partly by Community legislation and partly by bilateral agreements between Member States. The bulk of these transport operations of goods by road for hire or award is still apparently governed by bilateral agreements. Paragraph 10 of the report states:
When the common market in transport is eventually achieved there will no longer be any reason to limit the capacity for the carriage of goods by road between Member States.
This is part of a long-drawn-out situation involving some Community Regulations and adjustment of bilateral agreements.
Paragraph 11 states that what is contained in the proposed Council Regulation would, if adopted, affect the adjustment of bilateral quotas, and sets out the ways in which these would be adjusted.
Paragraph 12 looks at the implications for Ireland and notes that we have bilateral road transport agreements with France, Belgium and Germany. Each of these agreements contains a quota restriction on the number of operations which may be carried out. There is a provision in each agreement for the establishment of a joint committee of the competent authorities of the two countries to review the terms of the agreement and, where necessary, the level of the quota. The report summarises the implications of these proposals by saying at paragraph 13 that the Commission's proposals are seen as a step towards the abolition of bilateral licences altogether. We note the views expressed to the Sub-Committee in the memorandum from CIE which opposes complete liberalisation of road transport in the Community and confesses that they would have misgivings about the abolition of the bilateral licensing system. Nevertheless, they accept that the Commission at present seek merely to bring about a degree of harmonisation of the criteria on which negotiations would be based. That is the present state of Community involvement in this area which is still very largely governed by bilateral agreements relating to the quotas.
The next matter relates to the accounting system for infrastructure expenditure. This again is a very technical measure which proposes to amend an earlier Council Regulation and to introduce a better accounting system—a more transparent accounting system is the technical term. The views expressed to the Sub-Committee were that this was not a matter which had any particular significance for us. It was part of the Commission's concern to improve the administrative and procedural aspects of the accounting system.
The report at paragraph 17 refers to the Community quota system for the freeing of the carriage of goods by road from all quantitative restrictions, and this relates to an annual quota of authorisations allocated among the Member States. This is the matter which is of the most importance of those to be considered by Members of the Joint Committee. The authorisations, which are allocated on a quota basis, enable the holder to engage in the carriage of goods by road for hire or reward between EEC Member States on a bilateral basis, that is, between the haulier's own country and another EEC country and also on a multilateral basis, that is, between two EEC countries, neither of which is the haulier's own country.
Of the quota of 2,835 authorisations for the Community for 1978, Ireland's allocation is 60. The allocations granted to Ireland are internally allocated to hauliers by the Minister for Tourism and Transport. The Commission proposal was for a 20 per cent increase with effect from 1 January next and this would increase the over-all quota to 3,402 authorisations. The way in which this quota would be allocated involves a two-fold assessment, one half being on a linear basis and the other half being on the basis of the rate of utilisation of authorisations in 1977. The Council has decided that the quota for 1978 is to be increased by 10 per cent only and not 20 per cent and they agree that half will be on a linear basis and half on the rate of utilisation. Whereas the Commission's proposal would have given Ireland 69 authorisations out of a total of 3,402, the Council's proposal probably gives us only 65 out of 3,122. This enables Irish hauliers to use an additional five road vehicles under the scheme.
The Sub-Committee wishes to record its disappointment with this allocation of authorisations for Ireland for 1979. Quite apart from the reluctance of the Council to agree to no more than an extremely moderate increase in the overall quota the system of allocating half the increase on the basis of utilisation operates unfairly in Ireland's case. Any real international road transport from Ireland entails one or even two sea crossings. These are of course made even more difficult and time-consuming by the vagaries of our weather and must reflect unfavourably when contrasted with the relatively trouble-free use by operators in the contiguous continental Member States. So we are operating at a competitive disadvantage and this is further aggravated by the existence of extensive, purpose built, road systems in other countries. So if anything, Ireland should be seeking a higher average in its basic allocation of licences to compensate for the slower turn around time and usage of licences occasioned by its peripheral island position. We recommend that every effort be made to have this position recognised when the Community quota comes up again for review. The calculation of the quotas should take the Irish system into account.
Finally we deal with the proposal relating to the combined road/rail carriage of goods and this refers to an existing Council Directive which liberalised certain types of combined road/rail carriage of goods from all quota and authorisation systems. This is due to expire at the end of this month and the Commission's proposal is to amend the Directive making it permanent. The Council's decision is to retain the present common rules on a permanent basis but to extend them on an experimental basis to combine road/rail container traffic for two years. This is not a matter which affects Ireland greatly; there are no railway facilities in Ireland for combined road/rail carriage and the possibility of demand to justify them is not foreseen, so the impact of this proposal here would be slight. We have a memorandum from CIE informing us of the type of operation involved and it can only be commercially viable where there is a regular heavy flow of suitable traffic over long distances.
This report covers a number of draft proposals from the European Community. I think it is fair to represent the views of the Sub-Committee; we felt that the question of allocation of the quotas and Ireland's share of that was the most important aspect and that otherwise it is a technical part of an on-going discussion of the possibility of a common transport policy and not really of any great impact.
