Vol. 574 No. 1
409 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Transport if consideration has been given to allowing the national car test to be undertaken by officially appointed garages, rather than one company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26475/03]
The national car testing service has been engaged on a sole contractor basis to provide and operate an integrated national network of dedicated test centres. This method of procuring the service was decided by the Government in 1996 from a range of options, among which could have been the operation of the service through appointed local garages. The present contract for roadworthiness testing of cars excludes, for its duration, the deployment of other procurement arrangements.
