The Board of the Rotala Group, owner of Diamond Bus North West, says it will appeal against the decision of the judicial review into the introduction of franchising in Greater Manchester
Following the decision in March last year by the Mayor of Greater Manchester to franchise the bus market in the city region, Rotala made a claim to the High Court to judicially review the process by which the consultation was carried out by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the ultimate decision by the Mayor to continue with plans to franchise the bus network.
As reported in last week’s news pages, the outcome of this claim was handed down by Mr Justice Julian Knowles on 9 March this year. Throughout Rotala’s court claim, the company’s Board had remained confident that the decisions were irrational and/or unlawful. Therefore, the company said that although it respects the court’s decision, it found it ‘extremely disappointing’ that the judge had dismissed the claim. The Board said it still believes the decisions to be irrational and/or unlawful and is in the process of applying for permission to appeal the decision to the Court of Appeal.
The company said it was acting to attempt to protect its business from a decision that it believes is not only detrimental to Rotala’s future prospects, but also potentially detrimental to the citizens of Greater Manchester in imposing upon them the financial burden of a franchising scheme that the Board believes has not been properly assessed in line with the relevant legislation.
Rotala says it remains committed to providing a high level of service to bus users in and remains willing to enter into a statutory partnership with Transport for Greater Manchester and other bus operators in the city. Rotala maintains its view that the partnership approach would not only be just as effective as a franchising scheme at less risk to the public purse, but also could be implemented far more quickly than the full franchising scheme.
However, should Rotala be unsuccessful in its legal case and the franchising scheme is implemented, the operator warned it could be required to sell its depot and the bus assets based there to GMCA. The company believes that the depot has first class facilities and is the most modern and up-to-date bus depot in the city region, and that the bus fleet based there is also the most modern of any of the large operators in the region. The Board said it is confident that the potential value from the sale of these assets under the mechanisms which the GMCA has already announced will at a minimum realise their book values, and be more than sufficient to pay off the mortgage on the depot and the hire purchase debt associated with the bus assets based there. As a result, the Group said that any such sale would have no negative effect on its balance sheet and the capital which it has invested in its Greater Manchester operation would be realised into cash and be available for re-investment or redeployment elsewhere in the Group.
