1 Driving licences
| (25145)
15820/03
COM(03) 621
| Draft Directive on driving licences (Recasting)
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| Legal base | Article 71 EC; co-decision; QMV
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| Department | Transport |
| Basis of consideration | Minister's letter of 6 July 2004
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| Previous Committee Report | HC 42-ix (2003-04), para 10 (4 February 2004)
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| To be discussed in Council | Not known
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| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | For debate in European Standing Committee A
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Background
1.1 Community legislation relating to driving licences is, according
to the Commission, "governed by two main principles: enhancing
the free movement of Community citizens and contributing to an
improvement in road safety." The Commission has proposed
a "recasting"[1]
of the legislation. Its draft Directive is designed to reduce
the possibilities of fraud, guarantee the free movement of citizens
and contribute to improved road safety. Its new or revised provisions
would:
- abolish the paper Community driving licence model so that
all new licences would be on plastic photo card;
- allow optional introduction of a microchip into
plastic card licences;
- introduce limited administrative validity, so
requiring periodic administrative renewal of licences (but not
of the underlying entitlement to drive);
- require for drivers of medium and heavy goods
vehicles, minibuses, buses and coaches periodic medical examinations
to coincide with administrative renewal and allow Member States
to require the same for other drivers;
- redefine vehicle categories, with a closer alignment
of the main sub-categories as between Member States;
- harmonise minimum ages for drivers;
- harmonise requirements for initial qualification
and periodic re-training of driving examiners;
- prohibit issue by another Member State of a new
driving licence to a person whilst his or her driving licence
is withdrawn by his or her home Member State (to combat driving
licence tourism);[2] and
- require evaluation by the Council of some of
the main provisions five years after the date for transposition
by Member States of the new Directive.
1.2 When we considered this proposal in February
2004 we said it could have a significant effect on the content
and provision of licences for UK drivers. We noted that, although
the Government supports in principle elements of the proposal,
it has considerable reservations on points of substance, the financial
implications and subsidiarity. We concluded that before considering
the matter further we wished to hear about the outcome of the
consultation exercise the Department was undertaking and about
the Government's emerging negotiating objectives.
The Minister's letter
1.3 The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department
of Transport (Mr David Jamieson) has now sent us his Department's
summary of the outcome of its consultations and his Department's
partial Regulatory Impact Assessment, which gives an indication
of the Government's negotiating objectives.
1.4 The key points of the consultation are summarised
as follows:
"Of the roughly 300 organisations to whom letters
were sent about 60 responded. Respondents were asked to give
yes or no answers to the specific questions, but were also given
the opportunity to comment in more detail. In some cases, whilst
the overall yes/no result suggested a leaning towards one point
of view, the weight of the more detailed comments contradicted
this.
"There was overwhelming support for the Commission's
proposals to combat licence fraud, although this was more for
the principle than for every detail of the proposals, allowing
scope to fine-tune in negotiation. Civil liberty and practical
(including cost) concerns were raised about the computer chip.
"On harmonised validity periods and medical
checks the responses, whilst in general supporting the principle
of 'limited administrative validity', drew attention to practical
problems arising from the over-rigidity of the Commission's proposals,
and from the proposed tie-in with medical checks. Particular
concern was expressed over the need for truck and bus drivers
at ages under 45 years to have medicals, and over the proposed
lowering to 65 of the age at which motorcycle, car and light van
licences would have to be renewed.
"As regards the road safety case, there was
little consensus, and the Commission's failure to include specific
measures that would improve road safety was noted.
"A large majority of respondents supported the
Commission's proposals for driving examiner qualification and
training, but there was concern about the effects on the Delegated
Driving Examiner scheme under which bodies other than the Driving
Standards Agency conduct their own tests.
"As regards the proposed changes affecting the
categories of vehicle for which driving entitlement may be issued:
— Mopeds and motorcycles generated several
very detailed responses, and little consensus, except that there
should be a mandatory practical test for moped riders.
— Cars and light vans provoked general
agreement, except that a majority of motoring and caravanning
organisations, some leisure organisations, and some vocational
driving organisations (including the Freight Transport Association)
opposed the proposal to require a special test to tow any trailer
exceeding 750 kg in maximum approved mass.
— For medium and large goods vehicles,
the new definitions were generally accepted. It was argued that
the new requirements for C1 (medium goods vehicles) would inhibit
the driving of motorhomes and that there was no safety case for
doing so. Most of the commentary on the proposed lowering of
the size limit for C1 from 7.5 to 6 tonnes was strongly against
this measure.
— On minibuses, buses and coaches, the
response was divided between support for and opposition to the
Commission's proposals. There was concern that raising the minimum
age for bus and coach drivers from 21 to 24, and the new requirement
for five-yearly renewal, would deplete the pool of drivers available
to the industry.
— On the whole, the proposal to make minibuses
and medium goods vehicles equivalent for driver licensing purposes
was opposed.
"There was strong support in principle for the
proposal to help combat 'driving licence tourism'."
1.5 The partial Regulatory Impact Assessment sets
the context of the Government's negotiating stance, saying
"As it stands, the Directive would allow for
some improvement in anti-fraud protection. However, the proposals
for harmonisation of vehicle categories are too complex as drafted,
and the Commission provides little convincing evidence that many
of these proposals would improve road safety … The UK aims
for a text which would have a positive impact on fraud-reduction,
road safety and personal mobility. There is potential for the
Directive to result in significant improvements in these areas
… But the Commission's proposed text would require significant
redrafting to achieve such aims … In order to get the maximum
benefit from the proposed Directive as a whole, the UK may have
to accept changes to vehicle categories and the rules governing
drivers' access to these categories."
1.6 From the assessment we discern the following
negotiating objectives for the Government:
Driver licence security
- improved flexibility in the
permitted content and function (for instance use also as a hazardous
goods certificate) of the microchip in photocards;
- improved flexibility in the proposal for renewal
of limited administrative validity of licences at five or ten
year periods to enable, for example, short-term licences to be
issued to people with medical conditions;
- limited administrative validity of licences to
be more clearly distinguished from entitlement to drive;
- removal of the requirement for regular medical
checks for professional drivers under the age of 45;
Driving examiner qualification and training
- rather than the inappropriate
procedure proposed for periodic training of examiners, training
to be focused on examiner failures, changes in the law and new
technological developments;
Combating driving licence tourism
- careful redrafting so that
the required international exchanges of data are commensurate
with the problem and with the available means for data-exchange;
Categories of vehicles and related measures
- generally the changes proposed
should be specific, clearly identifiable and worth having —
the Commission has not made a strong case for the proposals, particularly
in terms of road safety benefits;
- removal of the requirement to recognise Member
States' licences for moped riders issued without a practical test
and tightening of the definition of mopeds;
- in relation to staged and age-related access
to larger motorcycles, either permit Member States to retain existing
provisions or build in features enabling a model progression for
the rider which is more likely to deliver real road safety benefit
than the Commission's proposal;
- in relation to changes to categories under which
vehicle-trailer combinations may be driven, the status quo rather
than either Commission's proposed simplification or the alternative
proposals of special interest groups such as caravan lobby groups;
- removal of the proposed reduction of the upper
weight limit for medium-sized goods vehicles from 7.5 tonnes to
six tonnes;
- a new maximum length limit of eight metres in
the definition of minibuses rather than the Commission's proposed
seven metres;
- removal of the proposal to merge the separate
categories of minibus and medium goods vehicles licence-holders;
and
- dropping of the proposal to link age requirements
for licence-holders for large lorry/lorry-trailer combinations,
bus/bus-trailer combinations and minibus/ minibus-trailer combinations
to the Directive concerned with training of professional drivers.
Conclusion
1.7 We are grateful to the Minister for this information.
Whatever the possible benefits of the principle of this proposal,
the detail clearly has important implications for UK interests.
As foreshadowed in our earlier Report, we now recommend this
document for debate in European Standing Committee A. This will
provide an opportunity to explore further with the Minister the
issues and to urge a robust negotiation in pursuit of a recast
Directive that brings real additional benefit.
1 Recasting, designed to make Community legislation
more accessible and transparent, incorporates in a single text
any proposed substantive amendments and the unchanged provisions
of the existing legislation (and repeals that legislation). Back
2
Driving licence tourism is the practice by which a driver disqualified
in one Member State may establish usual residence in another,
then be issued with a licence in his new state of normal residence. Back
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