28/05/2001 (Agence Europe) - MEP Gilles Savary (PES, France) has started a petition among local elected representatives in France against the draft Regulation on opening local transport up to "regulated competition", which was published by the European Commission in July 2000 (see EUROPE of 27 July, p. 6). The petition has so far been signed by 500 "French plural left" representatives. It criticises the obligation on all local communities to put all public passenger transport (trams, buses, Metro, school transport, etc) out to tender. Gilles Savary says that this obligation violates the principle of local communities being free to run themselves and in effect removes national governments' prerogatives in terms of organising local government. The Meijer report on this issue will be debated at the European Parliament's July plenary session. The PES and the EP's Transport Committee have organised hearings.