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140 
WESTM NSTER HAUL
Page 7
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THE TALENTS among members of the House of Lords are so many and so varied that little surprise is evident when a Peer discloses that he has an unusual expertise.
But there was obvious reaction when Baroness Sharpies revealed that she held a heavy-duty licence. Surely this elegant lady did not spend her time away from the House careering round in juggernauts?
Lady Sharpies did not enlarge on her statement, but a later conversation with her established that, though she admired hgv drivers for their skill and courtesy, she is not one of them.
Her heavy-duty licence enables her to drive lorries carrying livestock for or from her Hampshire farm. "I used to take cattle to and from the market'', she recalled, "I don't do that nowadays, in fact I am not quite sure where my licence is, but I have got shire horses, and so I may be at the wheel again."
In fact her heavy driving dates back to the war, when she was a teenager — and in charge of a "Queen Mary", a vehicle used to haul planes.
But, though she has a high regard for lorry drivers, she is not enamoured of them when one overtakes another on a hill, causing a tailback of traffic.
Which was why she backed up Viscount Mountgarret, who drew attention to this problem. He had his descriptive phrases all ready — "leviathan juggernauts, straining every ounce of energy, billowing out black diesel fumes, attempting to grind past others striving hard . ."
Who knows what picture he would have gone on to paint. But he was cut short by several of his fellow Peers, who accused him or reading, a heinous crime in Parliamentary terms.
But Lord Mountgarret had made his point, and a Government answer had to be given to his suggestion that vehicles exceeding three tons axle weight should be prohibited from overtaking when going uphill on gradients of more than one in ten.
He was, one must assume, not entirely happy with the answer he got. Lord Mowbray and Stourton said that a prohibition could be very simply implemented if the Transport Department or a local authority wished it. But it was obvious that he was not in favour of an overall ban.
"The best we can hope for is that drivers use their common sense'', he said, a sentiment which will not be echoed by every frustrated car driver.
Lord Mowbray did, however, imply that action would be taken if a Minister or a local authority were told of persistent problems in a particular place.