IL wants to educate users so they can participate in minimum service decisions.

IL wants rail users to be able to participate in strike-related minimum service decisions, given that their perspectives can make arbitral awards “more inclusive, participatory and democratic.”

In a bill that the Lusa agency had access to that aims to “include rail users in minimum service decisions”, the party led by Rui Rocha cites that “according to the current law, minimum services in companies The public business sector can be created by the decision of the arbitration court.

“This arbitration tribunal, as a rule, consists of arbitrators nominated respectively by employees and employers. However, in the case of minimum services related to rail passenger transport, the law does not guarantee the participation of transport users,” he argues.

According to IL’s analysis, “These citizens, who are often completely dependent on rail for their commute to and from work, suffer greatly from the lack of rail.”

“Current arbitrations do not give voice to these citizens, whose views could enrich the decisions that the arbitral tribunal must make, making them more inclusive, participatory and democratic,” he defends.

This is why the liberals consider it “important to ensure that the functioning of the arbitration tribunal that determines minimum services in rail transport allows the intervention of user representatives such as associations representing people with disabilities and/or reduced mobility, user commissions and consumer associations.”

IL argues, in justifying its bill, that this would be in line with article 60 of the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic, according to which “consumer associations must be heard on matters relating to consumer protection”.

Along with this bill, the liberals are putting forward, according to the information provided by Luce, two draft resolutions (without the force of law), one of which protects the “competitiveness of rail passenger transport that meets the parameters of state rail passenger transport.” transport”.

In this legislative initiative, IL recommends, among other things, “to proceed with the necessary steps to start the market research process for the sub-concession of Comboios de Portugal, EPE, defending the railway concession contract signed between the company and the government. “.

Another draft resolution asks the government to “correct the shortcomings of the National Railway Plan and revise the related multi-year investment plans.”