Council to write to Minister over concerns EU laws will affect cross-border transport
Donegal County Council will write to the Minister for Transport seeking clarity on the impact of the imposition of new European Union (EU) rules on cross-border workers and commuters.
The issue concerns new rules pursuant to the EU mobility package, which are due to come into effect on Wednesday, July 1.
The motion was brought to the May Plenary meeting of Donegal County Council by Sinn Féin Councillor Albert Doherty, who requested a letter be sent to the Minister for Transport, Darragh O’Brien, seeking clarity and awareness for companies providing this service.
Cllr Doherty wants Donegal County Council to request the minister raise the issue with the EU Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport in Brussels in conjunction with the Minister for Infrastructure in the Northern Executive, Liz Kimmins.
The new rules will classify intra-island trips as international journeys requiring a new tachograph version 2 (G2V2) to be fitted and an international haulage licence acquired for HGVs undertaking this journey. The change will affect vans which weigh between 2.5 and 3.5 tonnes, which are engaging in cross-border transport.
Cllr Doherty highlighted a specific case of a haulage worker who is affected by the changes, having to obtain new documentation, additional training and overall additional costs.
Party colleague Cllr Gerry McMonagle seconded the motion, adding that: “This is another outworking of Brexit. My understanding was that there would be the free movement of goods and people throughout the six counties. We are sitting here on the island of Ireland and we are trying to promote cross-border trade and the free movement of our citizens.
“Now we are going to clamp significant costs upon people who are delivering our goods across the island on a daily basis. I think the Minister for Transport needs to look at this, either through the ministerial council and get some sort of concession about this border tax. Particularly for us here in Donegal, we primarily drive through the six counties to access other markets across the country.
“This will have a serious impact on drivers and hauliers, and we need to write to the RSA and the relevant ministers. Hopefully, we can seek change, otherwise we’re going back to customs post and we can’t have that on the island of Ireland.”
Both Cllr Doherty and Cllr McMonagle related the situation to Cllr Niamh Kennedy’s motion regarding the importance of local businesses and trade in the community.
Mr Richard Gibson, Director of Finance, Corporate Services and Information Systems at Donegal County Council, agreed to write to the Department of Transport and any relevant bodies to move the issues forward.
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme