A comment on the RHA's 'no comment'
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THE remarks in Commercial Motor (March 17) concerning the Road Haulage Association's "No Comment" on Budget day are not entirely accurate.
The RHA always has a team standing by on Budget day to answer Press inquiries, and this year was no exception. The team was here well after office hours and spent considerable time contacting by telephone as many Press outlets as possible. We thought we had covered them all, but owing to a temporary problem with our telephone switchboard and a complete misunderstanding on my part, Commercial Motorwas overlooked. We apologise to Commercial Motor and its readers for (unintentional) silence on this occasion.
DEREK WITCHER Press Officer and Public Relations Manager Road Haulage Association.
This gracious apology is rather neutralised by the second leader in this month's Roadway, the organ of the RHA, which we publish below.
A friend in need. .
WE ALL know the pressure of meeting deadlines. Sometimes it's a last minute rush to get a story in, and the Budget is no different.
But with one exception, the Association's comments on the Budget were all covered by the media, bath radio and newspapers.
The exception was, regrettably, one of our 'own' trade papers which huffed and puffed at the RHA for not "being available" when they finally got round to contacting us.
We were there all right, but due to a misunderstanding the expected comment was not received. Faults on both sides . . . but what an unkind curfrom a normally objective and supposedly friendly publication.
All we would say in reply to this is that CM phoned the RHA within minutes of the Budget speech ending only to be met with a recorded message explaining that the office was closed. Hardly a matter of 'when they finally got round to contacting us.' — Editor