Court process
The ferry firm first asked for permission to apply for a judicial review of the decision on Friday.
However, the case was not originally listed in the name of Brittany Ferries or Condor, but rather as a representation related to a ‘Project’ – keeping it out of the public eye.
Another hastily-scheduled hearing – this time specifically naming ‘Bretagne, Angleterre, Irelande S.A’ (Brittany Ferries) and the Minister for Sustainable Economic Development as parties – was added to the Royal Court schedule this morning.
Pictured: Another hearing was hastily arranged for this morning.
The Royal Court, presided over by Commissioner Matthew Thompson, granted Brittany Ferries “leave on a limited basis to challenge the Ministerial Decision… not to award a long-term operation concession contract for a passenger and freight ferry service operating routes between the Bailiwick of Jersey, the United Kingdom and France to the Applicant and award it to DFDS A/S (“DFDS”)”.
Full reasons are due to be set out in a judgment the Royal Court said “will shortly be published”.
Express requested court documents detailing the nature of Brittany Ferries’ challenge, but was advised these were unable to be shared at this time by the Royal Court.
“Serious concerns regarding fairness and legality”
However, an internal memo from Brittany Ferries CEO Christophe Mathieu, who is also Acting CEO of Condor, to Condor staff obtained by Express shed further light on the nature of the company’s discontent.
Pictured: The email to Condor staff from Mr Mathieu – obtained by Express – outlined the reasons for the legal challenge.
“We feel very strongly that we should stand up for what is right and for what all of our staff deserve, after many years of dedicated service to the Islands,” he told staff.
“So last Friday, I attended the Royal Court in Jersey to challenge the government’s decision to appoint DFDS. During the hearing, I highlighted serious concerns regarding the fairness and legality of the process and asked the judge to conduct an investigation,” Mr Mathieu continued.
He added: “Ultimately, we won the joint tender, but Jersey simply refused to accept the result. They then started a second process with a predictable outcome.”
A Government spokesperson told Express there would be no comment from the Minister in advance of the judgment’s publication.
Advocate Oliver Passmore appeared for Bretagne, while Advocate Michael O’Connell appeared for the Minister. DFDS was also represented at the hearing by Advocate Sam Williams.
DFDS “still in discussions” over timetable
The news comes just hours after DFDS released its “provisional” timetable for ferry services, noting that the full version would not be ready until next year. The Danish shipping giant said it was still in discussions with a number of ports – including Poole, Portsmouth and Saint-Malo – as it looked to firm up arrival and departure times across its routes.
Pictured: DFDS’s provisional St Malo sailings.
Last week, it also revealed the vessels that would be serving the Jersey routes.
A process far from plain sailing…
The process to select a new key ferry provider for the Channel Islands first veered off-course when Jersey’s Economy Chief Officer – the civil servant leading the process on Jersey’s side – had to step aside to alleviate conflict of interest concerns after accidentally voting for DFDS in an online poll. This delayed the final decision as a new lead civil servant was appointed.
Having failed to reach consensus in line with Guernsey, Jersey then initiated a new “rapid process” to confirm its preferred provider. Though Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel has stressed the contract could still go to either operator, he has also acknowledged “significant concerns” over Condor’s finances.
These concerns were not shared by Guernsey’s government, however – one of several inter-island disagreements that played out in the public eye. Brittany Ferries’ CEO also defended the overall financial position in an interview with Express.
On 4 December, it was publicly confirmed that Jersey had selected DFDS, with Deputy Morel describing the Danish shipping company is the “strongest strategic partner for Jersey”. Jersey’s Chief Minister, Deputy Lyndon Farnham, gave his full support to Deputy Morel throughout the process.
The Government said that, for Jersey passengers, the DFDS deal was expected to mean:
- greater frequency of ferries to the UK and France in peak periods;
- faster ferries to the UK;
- three new ferries within the next six years; and
- two dedicated high speed ferries for the summer.
Follow Express for updates…