Legal Service warns port-fee bill may amount to expropriation

The Faroe Islands’ Legal Service has raised serious concerns about a bill on port, bridge and goods charges, warning it could strip municipalities or ports of constitutionally protected financial rights. KVF reports that the bill was presented without public consultation and was not legally reviewed.

The Legal Service, part of the Prime Minister’s Office, sent the bill to be reviewed on September 18. But it had already been considered at a government meeting, so no legal review was carried out, according to a memorandum from the parliamentary administration dated October 19.

In an email to the Ministry of Industry on September 22, the Legal Service said bills should be sent for consultation and that the consultation period should be at least four weeks. The proposed bill had not been consulted on.

The Legal Service also said the bill did not adequately explain its financial consequences. It warned that a particular private port would be especially affected and raised the possibility that municipalities or ports could lose financial rights protected under Section 73 of the constitution. The memorandum describes this as a possible expropriation issue that the bill does not sufficiently address.

The memorandum says the proposal is identical to one submitted by Industry Minister Jacob Vestergaard in 2009. That bill was withdrawn six days after its presentation because it was considered to lack political support. It was sent for consultation, and all respondents who submitted views opposed it. The Faroese Association of Local Authorities, the Association of Municipalities in the Faroe Islands, Tórshavn Municipality and the Ministry of the Interior were among those who said it could conflict with the constitution.

The concern at the time was that, under the proposal, ships operated by the national ferry service would not pay port charges, although municipalities had for years charged for services in port areas. The memorandum says no changes to the law since 2009 have made those concerns less relevant.

The parliamentary administration criticised the new bill for not addressing the possible expropriation issue, despite the minister and his staff being aware of the objections raised in 2009. Vestergaard has publicly said that he and the ministry’s staff do not consider the proposal to amount to expropriation.

The administration has not recommended stopping consideration of the bill. It says parliament and its committees can examine the issues further, including the possibility of expropriation. Whether the proposal conflicts with the constitution remains unresolved.