THE Isle of Man Steam Packet Company’s fleet, frequency of service and destinations are just some of the areas up for discussion with Infrastructure chiefs, if the Council of Ministers approves the holding of planned talks.
Infrastructure Minister David Cretney MHK said the planned talks came in the wake of a meeting last month about whether the existing User Agreement ‘remained in the best interest of our island in its current form or whether any changes were needed’.
CoMin is due to decide ‘imminently’ whether it approves of the agenda of the meetings, the Minister said.
‘Clearly the Isle of Man needs a regular service,’ he said.
‘We believe the Steam Packet with the User Agreement has provided that and it continues to meet its obligations.
‘But we are aware there are some things they are doing which are economically unviable for them.’
Mr Cretney said future investment in Douglas Harbour and the Steam Packet’s fleet, destination ports in the UK and Ireland, and frequency and quality of service provided by the Steam Packet could be discussed.
He said of immediate interest would be the resilience of the Steam Packet’s services and its contingency plan to overcome foreseeable risks such as breakdowns.
Any changes to the User Agreement would be subject to Tynwald approval.
The User Agreement requires the company to operate a designated level of service, both for passengers and freight, in return for exclusive use of the linkspan in Douglas.
Earlier this month, Isle of Man Steam Packet Company chief executive Mark Woodward signalled that the company was considering pulling out of running to Heysham harbour and concentrating its services on Liverpool instead.
In a radio interview, he said that Liverpool was a ‘clear favourite’ of the majority of passengers and freight customers.
He said the creation of a bespoke, in-river berth at Liverpool would be a ‘serious option’ for the Steam Packet looking to the long-term.
The Steam Packet declined to comment on the planned meetings on the User Agreement.