UPPLEMENTARY FUEL New Company to
Page 39
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
reported that many members were now receiving an advance of supple mentary allowance approximating to half the basic, although some (including builders' merchants) had been turned down completely.
Plymouth: Advance allowances of less than half the basic had beenreported from Devon and Cornwall, whilst those receiving none at all included furniture removers, builders' merchants and agricultural machinery engineers, Mr. W. E. Foster, R.H.A. area secretary, reported.
The military based on Plymouth often required urgent furniture removals, he said, and asionany contractors were already operating from railheads, further removal traffic by rail would prove impracticable.
Southern Area: Mr. .1. W. Hescroff, R.H.A., area secretary, said that whilst those hauliers entitled to supplementary allowance had received about half their basic ration as an advance, others who had applied later ,had, so far, not received any, so that a complete picture of the situation was not yet available.
Birmingham: Less than a tenth of their applications granted—and not even half the basic in some instances—was the complaintirom Birmingham. Many had had their applications-for supplementary turned down completely and were appealing to their district transport officer, said Mr. G. F. Goodwin, secretary of the West Midland Area of the R.ILA. Inconsistencies between different sub-district offices were also reported.
Northern Area: Farther north, Mr. Frank Milton, secretary of the R.H.A. at Newcastle upon Tyne, reported that the area committee met on Monday morning to review results of supplementary applications before meeting the Regional Transport Commissioner that afternoon. This followed their telegram to the Minister of Transport last week. The results so far showed that many hauliers had received no supplementary. whilst others had received small and often varying amounts. Scotland: The combination of original stocks, basic rations and interim supplementary allowances will enable some hauliers to operate until towards the end of this month, but many operators are getting only a small proportion of their supplementary application.
Because their overall fuel allowance is only a quarter of requirements, Charles Alexander and Partners (Transport), Ltd., have been forced to take off the road two-thirds of their fleet of 140 lorries and to lay off 70 drivers.
Cardiff: Many large operators in South Wales had not received any reply by Monday to their supplementary applications, whilst medium and small operators who had been given an allowance were finding it very small indeed —not even equivalent to half the basic in many instances. Some hauliers had been informed that it was an interim allowance, but many had not.
The outlook was grim for many hauliers in his area, said Mr. L. P. Owens, the R.H.A. secretary at Cardiff.
"GIVE ARMY REPAIRS TO BODYBUILDERS"
TO make up for loss of business caused by fuel rationing, body repairs to vehicles run by the armed services should be done by local private concerng, instead of being sent to Government depots. The Ministry of Supply has been told this by Mr. W. Woodhead, general secretary of the National Employers' Association of Vehicle Builders.
Mr. Woodhead pointed out that apart from the benefit to bodybuilders, such a scheme would save fuel. Vehicles normally sent some distance for repairs would have their journeys cut.