Government of Jersey

Information about the publication of Ministerial Decisions

A formal published “Ministerial Decision” is required as a record of the decision of a Minister (or an Assistant Minister where they have delegated authority) as they exercise their responsibilities and powers.

Ministers are elected by the States Assembly and have legal responsibilities and powers as “corporation sole” under the States of Jersey Law 2005 by virtue of their office and in their areas of responsibility, including entering into agreements, and under any legislation conferring on them powers.

An accurate record of “Ministerial Decisions” is vital to effective governance, including:

demonstrating that good governance, and clear lines of accountability and authority, are in place around decisions-making – including the reasons and basis on which a decision is made, and the action required to implement a decision
providing a record of decisions and actions that will be available for examination by States Members, and Panels and Committees of the States Assembly; the public, organisations, and the media; and as a historical record and point of reference for the conduct of public affairs

Ministers are individually accountable to the States Assembly, including for the actions of the departments and agencies which discharge their responsibilities.

The Freedom of Information Law (Jersey) Law 2011 is used as a guide when determining what information is be published. While there is a presumption toward publication to support of transparency and accountability, detailed information may not be published if, for example, it would constitute a breach of data protection, or disclosure would prejudice commercial interest.

A decision made (26.06.07) to approve the Service Level Agreements with Condor Ferries.

Subject:	Service Level Agreements with Condor Ferries
Decision Reference:	MD-E-2007-0117		Exempt clause(s):	none
Type of Report: (oral or written)	Oral		Person Giving Report (if oral):	Colin Gibaut
Telephone or e-mail Meeting?	e-mail		Report File ref:
Written report – Title	n/a
Written report – Author (name and job title)	n/a
Decision(s): The Minister approved the Service Level Agreements with Condor Ferries, being one covering the routes from Jersey to the UK ports and separately a second one for the Jersey – St Malo route.
Reason(s) for decision: The Service Level Agreements have been prepared after considerable consultation and with a view to implementing the States decision of 28 March 2006 that there should be an Agreement in place for each passenger and car ferry operator on each route to and from Jersey. Condor Ferries have now written confirming their willingness to sign the Agreements.
Action required: Minister to sign two copies of each Agreement. These will be forwarded to Condor Ferries to countersign and return one copy of each. There are no new financial or human resource issues arising.
Signature: Senator P.F.C.Ozouf Minister		Date of Decision:

Condor Ferries - Service Level Agreements

Service Agreement

Between

The Minister for Economic Development of the States of Jersey

and

Condor Limited

in respect of

Passenger and Car Ferry Shipping Services to be operated between

Jersey , St Malo and Guernsey

________________________________________________________________

Service Agreement

(hereinafter referred to as the “Agreement”)

made on between

The Minister for Economic Development of the States of Jersey

(hereinafter referred to as the “Minister”)

and

Condor Limited

(hereinafter referred to as the “Company”)

in respect of

Passenger and Car Ferry Shipping Services to be operated between

Jersey , St Malo and Guernsey

____________________________________________________________

Whereas

(A) The Company will maintain a permit under the Harbours (Jersey) Regulations 1962, as amended, for the use of the roll-on roll-off ramps in St Helier Harbour to enable the company to operate a passenger and car ferry service between Jersey, St Malo and Guernsey. If the said permit is refused or withdrawn this Agreement will be terminated.

(B) This Agreement is entered into by both parties to promote good practice, to clarify the respective expectations of government, operators and travelling public and as a reference point for all parties.

(C) This Agreement will remain valid until 31 December 2008 unless terminated or renewed under the provisions of section 8.

The Minister and the Company agree as follows:

1. PORTS

1.1 The Company will operate between St Helier, St Malo and Guernsey for passenger/car ferry services.

1.2 The Minister agrees that the Company may use alternative ports to those stated in the event of an emergency, but only for the period of the emergency.

2. VESSELS

2.1 The Company will operate a minimum of one passenger and car carrying ferry. The capacity of the vessel is as specified in the Ramp Permit.

2.2 The Company will not reduce the vessel commitment on the routes and as specified in the Ramp Permit, without prior approval of the Minister. Such approval shall not be unreasonably withheld or refused.

2.3 The Company undertakes to provide vessels which are of a high standard of quality, safety and reliability and which comply with all necessary national and international regulations, protocols and standards.

3. SCHEDULES

3.1 The Company will operate regular scheduled services, including a reasonable winter service, between Jersey, St Malo and Guernsey. The schedule is to be agreed with Jersey Harbours and included in the Ramp Permit.

3.2 Any material year on year reduction of scheduled sailings on any route will require approval of the Minister.

3.3 The Company will give due consideration to suggestions of the Minister regarding vessel scheduling at any time, and will respond with commercial reasoning if required.

3.4 The Harbour Master will ensure that reasonable priority of ramp slot allocation is accorded to the Company to meet its scheduling requirements, during the currency of this Agreement.

3.5 The Company will provide to the Minister summary reports on the operating performance of vessels against schedule on a quarterly basis.

4. FARE APPROVAL and PROMOTION

4.1 The Company will submit any proposed increase in maximum public fare levels to the Minister for approval on an annual basis, together with commercial reasoning for such increase. The Minister’s approval shall not be unreasonably withheld.

4.2 In seeking fare approval, the Company will provide to the Minister on an annual basis the average net fare revenue achieved per foot passenger and per passenger car on the routes covered by this Agreement, together with commercial and market reasoning for year on year variances. The Company undertakes to provide as much market information as possible in support of its request, including a description of the market, its size, performance and key competition issues. Insofar as this information is commercially sensitive, it is provided on a confidential basis to, and for the exclusive use of, the Minister, his Department and any Jersey regulatory authority as required by the Minister.

4.3 Fare approvals will be by publication of a Ministerial Decision.

4.4 The Company will consult with Jersey Tourism on an on-going basis to maximise the effectiveness of the combined marketing and promotional effort to encourage tourism to and from Jersey.

5. COMPETITION

5.1 The Minister at all times retains the right to enter into service agreements with other passenger/car ferry operators.

5.2 Jersey Harbours undertakes to inform the Department on receipt of any new application for a ramp permit for passenger and car ferry services. With the prior knowledge of the applicant, the Department will draw the attention of the public to any such application and consider all responses in deciding the appropriate course to take.

5.3 Jersey Harbours will make reasonable endeavours to provide the maximum period of notice to the Company as is practicable from the time when a new application for a Ramp Permit for passenger and car ferry services is received and until the time when the permit is issued.

5.4 The terms and conditions of service agreements with other operators will be, as far as possible, consistent with the terms of this Agreement. However, there may be circumstances arising from Jersey’s operational and policy considerations or domestic and international obligations that do not allow this equivalence.

5.5 In the event of the Minister entering into an agreement with another operator and within which there are terms that require a lower provision of service, the Company may: (i) adopt those lower provisions in place of the relevant ones stipulated in this Agreement, (ii) negotiate a new agreement (and in relation to this, the Minister’s agreement will not be unreasonably withheld) or (iii) choose to continue to meet the original requirements.

6. CUSTOMER CARE

6.1 The Company will maintain published information in the form of a Customer Charter, Terms and Conditions of Carriage or some other means, which as a minimum will cover the matters set out in these clauses. The Minister may suggest improvements to these standards. It is understood by the Minister that a Customer Charter and the Terms and Conditions of Carriage must be appropriate and commercially sustainable.

6.2 The Company will take reasonable steps to assist small groups and families to sit together or if this is not possible it will advise the passengers at the time of booking.

6.3 The Company will provide facilities allowing access for the disabled on all vessels.

6.4 In the event that technical or severe weather problems with a vessel cause delays in excess of four hours, and without prejudice to any contractual arrangements between the carrier and a tour operator and customers, passengers will be entitled to cancel their bookings with full refund of fare.

6.5 The company will endeavour to publish its following year’s timetables as soon as possible but at any rate no later than the end of October of the preceding year. Prior to the publication of the timetables, customers will be able to reserve space on a passage on the nearest equivalent date and time, based on expected schedules (this is known as pre-registration).

Alternatively, the Company may maintain a rolling annual timetable so that at all times customers will be able to reserve space on a passage up to a year in advance.

6.6 The Company will give due consideration to suggestions of the Minister regarding possible variation in vessel type and capacities and will respond with commercial reasoning if required.

6.7 The Company will undertake passenger surveys on a regular basis to test the services delivered. The results of these surveys will be submitted to the Minister.

6.8 The Company agrees that from time to time the Minister may publish the passenger survey summary reports, the summary analysis of customer communications and the record of vessel performance against schedules.

6.9 The Company will have documented and published procedures setting out the arrangements for receiving and addressing passenger complaints and for the management of passengers in the event of delayed, disrupted or cancelled sailings.

7. FARES AND DEMAND DRIVEN PRICING

7.1 The Company operates a demand driven pricing model. To aid public understanding and how travellers may best benefit from such a model this may be described as follows: “Demand driven pricing is based on the level of customer demand at any one time. The rate at which passengers or vehicles are booked for a sailing fluctuates. It can increase or decrease over the days and months before a sailing. This means that prices for particular sailings will vary. Separately, passenger and vehicle fares may increase or reduce over time. Typically, there is a price advantage to booking early but there are circumstances where prices can fall closer to the time of sailing depending on the level of demand”.

7.2 The Company may offer a range of public fares and promotional fares on each route to suit perceived market demand, and to encourage traffic growth.

7.3 The Company may negotiate fare levels in contracts with tour operators who will promote tourist traffic on the routes. The Company will issue and distribute public fares using brochures, leaflets, and/or electronic media as deemed appropriate by the Company.

7.4 The Company’s public fare pricing policy will not discriminate on the basis of origin of customer booking. This means, for example, that two passengers from different locations and travelling on the same vessel, who had booked at the same time for the same journey, will pay the same price. However, where a passenger books a package involving other services or via a tour operator then there may be a price difference.

7.5 Promotional fares are market driven and therefore promotional fares offered by the Company in one region may vary from those offered in another.

8 RENEWAL and TERMINATION

8.1 Subject to the provisions below on renewal and termination and that a valid and relevant Ramp Permit is in place, the Agreement will remain valid until 31 December 2008.

8.2 This Agreement can be terminated or varied at any time by mutual agreement. In particular, the termination date referred to in clause 8.1 is subject to change by mutual agreement between the Minister and the Company in order to achieve alignment with any future arrangements the Company or the Minister may make with the States of Guernsey.

8.3 The Minister may terminate this Agreement in the event of any enactment being brought into force which affects the regulation of Ramp Permits.

8.4 In the event of the Company failing materially to comply with the service levels specified in this Agreement, the Minister shall give the Company six months written notice of his intention to terminate the Agreement and will specify the reasons for doing so.

8.5 The Company has given notice of its desire to have an agreement that extends beyond 2008. The Minister will consider renewal / extension with a decision being made as soon as possible but in any event no later than 1 March 2008. For the avoidance of doubt, the Company shall have no enforceable right or expectation of renewal at any time.

8.6 The Minister reserves the right to review the terms and conditions of this Agreement if there occurs material change in legislative or market circumstances and in the opinion of the Minister a review is required.

8.7 The Company may request review of the terms and conditions of this Agreement and will be required to supply the Minister with a full and reasoned basis for such review.

8.8 It is understood by the parties that the length of a Service Agreement and any notice period requirements may vary as between different operators and the Minister.

9 GENERAL

9.1 Any dispute between the parties relating to this Agreement shall, in default of agreement between the parties, be referred to arbitration to be conducted in accordance with the Arbitration (Jersey) Law 1998, save that two arbitrators (one to be nominated by the Minister and one by the Company) shall be appointed. No arbitrator or umpire shall be an officer, servant or agent of the Minister or the Company and the proper charges of the arbitrators and any umpire shall be shared equally by the parties.

9.2 In accordance with Article 14 of the Arbitration (Jersey) Law 1998, available remedies include specific performance.

9.3 Notwithstanding clause 9.1 above, clauses 5.1 (The Minister’s right to enter into other agreements), 5.4 (Terms and conditions of service agreements with other operators), 8.3 (termination as a consequence of revised legislation) and 8.5 (renewal arrangements) will not be subject to arbitration.

9.4 Arbitration is not available for any matter relating to Ramp Permits, the terms and conditions of which are governed by Regulation 3 of the Harbours (Jersey) Regulations 1962.

9.5 The Company and the Minister undertake to meet on a regular basis to review performance under this Agreement.

9.6 This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of Jersey in force at the material time.

Signed:

_____________________________

Minister for Economic Development

Witnessed:

____________________________________ Date _______________

_____________________________

Director, Condor Limited

Witnessed:

____________________________________ Date _______________