Transport union on brink of bringing services to a standstill

BUS and rail services could grind to a halt within two weeks if, a series of strikes are announced today.

Having pulled out of talks with the Department of Transport earlier this week, the executive of the National Bus and Rail Union (NBRU) will meet today to decide whether to take industrial action.

Angered by the Department of Transport’s granting licences for bus routes to private operators during talks with CIE, the union’s general secretary Liam Tobin has indicated that strike action is almost certain.

While some union members want a repeat of January’s no fares day, it is understood that frustration with Transport Minister Seamus Brennan has reached boiling point.

Last night the union called on Mr Brennan to overhaul licensing. Calling the system “grossly unfair” Mr Tobin said it allowed private operators to acquire bus routes without competitive tendering.

“The NBRU is now calling on the Minister to make the overhaul the licensing system a priority. He could restore some credibility to the current process and provide value for money to the exchequer,” said Mr Tobin.

The NBRU says more than 400 licences have been given out in recent years at a cost of just €7.62 each, many on Bus Eireann routes which the company was instructed to stop using.

However a spokesman for Mr Brennan said that at most five licences had been issued this year.

Meanwhile, talks on a new national wage deal are to continue over the weekend despite fears from some quarters that negotiations were close to collapse.

Having received 7% for the first half of the current Sustaining Progress agreement, unions are anxious to match that for the next 18 months.

The unions also want an increase in the minimum wage and measures for those on low pay.

However, employers believe the last 7% increase was too much and insist that, with inflation falling, wage increases must be far more modest if competitiveness is to be maintained.

As talks concluded last night, a government spokesman said progress was difficult and that there remained significant gaps between both sides.