Cullen suggests further privatisation of driving tests

Transport Minister Martin Cullen has said that a second batch of driving tests could be outsourced to the private sector by 2007 if the waiting list for a test does not fall substantially.

He said an agreement between the Department and unions representing driver testers had a condition for a review in 2007 depending on measures to reduce the backlog.
“I think everybody is now agreed that whatever it takes, we have to end the backlog,” he said.
A second round of outsourcing would mean that a new tendering process would be required.

A contract to carry out driving tests is to be signed between the Department and SGS Ltd, the firm running the National Car Test, before July 1st, 2006.

However, Tom Hoare, assistant general secretary of Impact, the union representing the driver-testers, said that union agreement had been given for outsourcing on a strictly once-off basis.
“The Minister is on record everywhere saying this would be a one-off proposal. This issue of dealing with the backlog of tests is going to have to be addressed in the context of providing the resources to deal with testing,” he said.
“The issue the unions had with this proposal was not outsourcing or otherwise, but that unions had put forward alternative proposals that would have reduced the backlog within the same time.”