Meat snag in Spain
Page 5
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THE FOREIGN Office is being pressed to help meat hauliers who are being refused authority to run direct from Spain into Gibraltar.
The International Road Transport Union (IRU) customs commission and the Spanish customs directorate met in Madrid last week against a background of several hauliers being refused authority to move meat across the reopened frontier with Gibraltar.
A Netherlands company was refused permission to move meat direct from Malaga, and other hauliers have had similar problems. Because of Spain's political sensitivity about EEC common agricultural policy goods, it has been imposing these sanctions.
The Freight Transport Association, whose representative was at last week's meeting, is now asking the HM Customs and Excise to raise the matter through the Foreign Office.
Until the matter is resolved, it may be necessary for shippers either to send meat direct by ship or to ship it from Malaga.
The FTA is also pressing the Spanish authorities to provide an additional TIR Customs post south of Malaga, and this is now a matter for politicians to negotiate upon.
• See p14.