*Please note if you are affected by this change you must act to have your Cert changed before 31-12-20. Contact the CILT 01 6763188

The Coach Tourism & Transport Council of Ireland (CTTC) has welcomed that the Department of Transport have taken steps to make it easier for transport managers in Ireland who hold a professional qualification from a UK body, to continue working after the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December. 

As highlighted by the CTTC, after the end of the Brexit transition period Transport Managers’ Certificates of Professional Competence (CPC) issued by an authority of the United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland, will no longer be valid in the EU. Thanks to new actions taken by the Department of Transport and the European Commission, holders of a UK issued Transport Manager CPC qualification working for an Irish operator will now not have to re-sit their exam in order to obtain an equivalent certificate in Ireland.  The European Commission has indicated that the Department may issue a corresponding Irish Transport Manager CPC to those UK qualified individuals working for Irish operators, before the end of the Brexit transition period.

Reacting to the news, CTTC Chairman, John Halpenny said: “The news coming this week from the European Commission and Department of Transport will deliver peace of mind to transport managers across the country who will have been worried about their ability to continue working in the new year, as well as to coach operators who are under a legal obligation to ensure their staff are compliant with relevant regulations. Given that transport managers would have faced considerable practical barriers to sitting examinations amid a pandemic, the lifting of this requirement is a particularly timely move. We thank the Department of Transport for its leadership on this issue – it is thanks to their work that the urgency and seriousness of this matter was recognised at the European level. Department officials have also proactively sought out affected transport managers and  coach operators to inform them how Brexit will impact them and what steps they need to take. At the CTTC we now encourage our members and their relevant staff members to be on the lookout for further instructions coming soon from the Department on how UK-certified transport managers can obtain an Irish CPC without the need to sit an exam.”