Latest news with #JusticeSimons
BreakingNews.ie
2 days ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Skellig Michael boat trips can resume, court rules
The High Court has given the go-ahead for boat trips to Skellig Michael to resume. Mr Justice Garrett Simons granted an application by the Office of Public Works (OPW) to lift an automatic suspension on landing at the Unesco heritage site and former monastic island, which was also used as a film location for the Star Wars movies, The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. Advertisement The order will allow the OPW to enter into a legally binding contract with each of 15 boat operators who were successful in the public competition for permits to land on the island off the Kerry coast. The landing season runs from mid-May to the end of September each year. Those landing permits were automatically suspended when two unsuccessful bidders brought a High Court challenge to the decision. The OPW then had to apply to the court asking that the stay be lifted pending hearing of the substantive challenge. The unsuccessful bidders, Atlantic Endeavour Ltd and SMBT Ltd, trading as Skellig Michael Boat Trips, disagreed with the OPW interpretation of the legal effect of the automatic suspension. They contended that there are a number of mechanisms open whereby landing permits might legitimately be granted to the successful tenderers for the balance of the 2025 season, while preserving their own right to challenge the allocation of landing permits for the 2026 and subsequent seasons. Advertisement Mr Justice Simons heard the application to lift the suspension this week and on Thursday ordered that it be lifted. He said the practical effect of this order is that it will now be legally permissible for the OPW to issue landing permits to the 15 successful tenderers for the balance of the 2025 season. This will allow for the commencement of passenger landings at Skellig Michael, or Sceilg Mhichíl in Irish. He said his judgment entails no finding whatsoever on whether the outcome of the tender process allows the OPW to confine the right to land passengers on Sceilg Mhichíl to the 15 successful tenderers for a five-year period. Advertisement The proper interpretation of the request for tender and associated documentation, and the legal consequences of the tender process, remain open for debate at the trial of the action, he said. The judgment, he said "goes no further" than deciding that the execution of concession contracts does not result in the crystallisation of a contractual right on the part of the successful tenderers to exclusive landing rights for the 2026 and subsequent seasons. He said the significance of this finding is that the unsuccessful tenderers are not relegated to a claim for certain damages in respect of the 2026 and subsequent seasons. The only right which the OPW seeks to translate into a concluded contract, prior to the determination of the full High Court challenge, is confined to the 2025 landing season,he said. He said he was listing the substantive action for the alleged breaches of the public procurement legislation in July.
The Journal
3 days ago
- Business
- The Journal
'People's livelihoods at risk': Decision on opening of Skellig Michael to tourists due this week
A HIGH COURT judge will decide this week whether to lift a suspension on boating permits for ferries to and from the UNESCO heritage island Skellig Michael, saying the case requires top priority as 'people's livelihoods are at risk'. The permits have not been issued while legal proceedings are before the courts in the form of a judicial review of the tendering process. At the High Court today, Justice Garret Simons said he was 'staggered' by the assertion made by lawyers for the Office of Public Works (OPW) that it would need six months to prepare the case. He ordered it to be heard next month. Two companies, which were unsuccessful in their applications for the 2025 season, have made a judicial review application, resulting in a delay to the granting of permits. The season runs from May to the end of September. The OPW ran a competition in late 2024 to award 15 boating permits for summer 2025 serving the monastic island, which was chosen as a film location for the Star Wars movies, The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. However, in April 2025, two unsuccessful participants in the competition brought High Court proceedings challenging the outcome. The OPW has said that under Irish and EU law, they were then precluded from issuing permits for the 2025 summer season until legal proceedings were resolved. Advertisement Skellig Michael Boat Trips and Atlantic Endeavour Limited both dispute the process underpinning the granting of the licences, alleging it to be 'deficient' and 'without transparency' and have been granted permission for the challenge. At the High Court today, David Dodd BL, for the plaintiffs, told Justice Simons that nobody wanted to prevent boats from visiting the island. He said permits could be granted by the court in an interim fashion, as the issuing of a one-season permit was not a 'contract', as contended by the OPW. He said his clients are happy for the suspension to be lifted. Justice Simons asked Andrew Beck SC, for the OPW, why it would take six months to prepare for what the judge described as 'the most straightforward case of competition for licences'. Beck said there was discovery of documents needed, amendments to make and a possible issue around cross-examination. Justice Simons said he was 'staggered' that the case would take up to six months to get on and that there were 'livelihoods' at stake. The judge said the court would give the case 'top priority', adding that the court had 'gone out of its way' to facilitate an early trial. Justice Simons said he would rule on Thursday of this week on whether to lift the suspension of the permits. He adjourned the substantive hearing of the judicial review to 21 July. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
