Severe Restrictions on Belgian Hauliers H AM...AGE contractors in this country
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are not alone in their difficulties. Similar conditions apply in Belgium, where an Act was passed in August last which imposed a tax of 30 per cent, on the transport of merchandise by lorries over a distance of more than 12i miles.
Under the Act, the Belgian Minister of Finance and Transport has lately issued a regulation which provides that any shipment of merchandise by
B24 motor vehicles, on behalf of third parties, must be accompanied by a bill of lading. This must indicate the place and date of the shipment ; destination, name and address of the transporter, and the person for whom the transport is effected; the nature, weight, and content of the goods transported, and the number and marking of each object.
Failure toprovide a bill of •lading is punishable by a fine of 500 francs on
the carrier: A register must be kept by every person handling the transport of merchandise for third parties. The register, in which must be copied the information shown on the bill of lading, is to be closed every six months, and must then he filed and replaced by a new one. In arriving at the transport distance on which the 20-per-cent—tax is due, this is to be measured in •a straight line between the points of -origin and destination of the goods.