Derry City Sinn Féin Councillor Barney O’Hagan has called on the Department of Environment Minister, Derry MLA Mark H Durkan, to lobby support from his Executive colleagues to have all Driver and Vehicle Licencing (DVLA) responsibility transferred to Stormont.
Sinn Fein Cllr Barney O’Hagan.
Councillor O’Hagan said the “only way” to safeguard the 420 DVA jobs at risk in Northern Ireland was to transfer all its responsibilities to the Assembly.
Questioning why Minister Durkan not pursuing the “only guaranteed way” to protect DVA jobs in the North, Cllr O’Hagan said it made “administrative and economic sense” the full portfolio of the DVA be brought under the control of Stormont.
Cllr O’Hagan added: “The Minister should be in discussion with DFP and his Executive colleagues seeking support to have all DVLA responsibilities transferred to the authority of the Executive.
“The registration and licensing of vehicles and the collection of vehicle excise duty (“motor tax”) are “excepted matters” under the provisions of current legislation.
“The only way to safeguard the 420 jobs at risk by the proposal to amalgamate all vehicle registration and licensing in Swansea is to transfer all ‘registration, licensing and the collection of vehicle excise duty’ matters to the Assembly.
“Since the other responsibilities of the Agency – Driver licensing, Driver and Vehicle testing, Taxi and Bus licensing as well as on-the-road enforcement activities, are already matters for the Assembly it makes sense to bring the remaining aspects of the DVLA under the one umbrella.”
Cllr O’Hagan concluded: “Just as with corporation tax, airline passenger tax and other fiscal items it makes administrative and economic sense that the full portfolio of DVLA responsibilities be brought under control of the local Assembly.”
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