Time of Warning F OR the moment the initiative in the
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struggle for FOR to have hauliers and the passenger-vehicle operators have pin
forward programmes which go as far as can reasonably . be expected._ There is little to add until the Government • Makes knownitt own plans. In the meantime, it is being careful to avoid any action that may be construed as hostile to the British Transport Commission or any of itsExecutives. • .
A good deal has been said about the power of the Minister , of Transport, to Control the actioris of the . B.T.C. It has been argued on one side that he can order it to do practically anything he likes, and on the other side that he has virtually no right to interfere with any of its operations. . , An exact appraisal of his authority is not necessary at the present time. Until fresh legislation is introduced sonic time in the New Year, the Government cannot act against the interests of the B.T.C. and must, in fact, support it in every
. possible way. :
Force or Persuasion?
This reading of the position is supported by what the Government has done up to the present. Either by force or persuasion—the exact process has perhaps deliberately not been made clear—the Government has prevailed upon the B.T.C. to Stop acquisition& "if the
• B.T.C.," Sir David Maxwell Fyfe told the House of Commons, " were to acquire any more road haulage undertakings at a time:When the Government policy is to facilitate the expansion of private road haulage activities, it would obviously not only calise hardship but be contrary to common sense." . . To many people it seems just as much against common sense for the B.T.C. to continue to administer the permit system as if nothing had happened. There seem i to be no good reason why ordinary permits Should be cancelled when there is a strong likelihood that in a short time the 25-mile limit upon which those permits depend will be abolished. Why, the argument runs, when there is a six-month freeze upon acquisitions, should there not also be a six-month freeze upon permit revocations'?
Interference with Duty The reason for the distinction between the courses of action lies in the effect each would have upon the wcirk of the B.T.C.. Not even the most bigoted Socialist can claim that, as a result of not acquiring the 80 or 90. undertakings rescued at the 11th hour, the R.T.C. has suffered an unfair or harmful deprivation. During the final stage of acquisition, the Road Haulage Executive has been noticeably reluctant to take over some of the companies offered to it. Curtailment of power over permits could be more effectively criticized. The B.T.C. has certain duties, specific although none too clearly defined, and to help in their performance it has been -given, amongst other things, the right to grant or withhold permits. To limit that right may be regarded to some extent as interference with the carrying out by the B.T.C. of its duty.
The Government would no doubt take a different view if the hauliers concerned were suffering Aross hardship.
There: is no evidence that this is happening at the moment. The permit procedure is likely to have little more than nuisance value during the winter. Whenevesan ordinary permit expires, the R.H.E.. appears to be putting up little more than a token resistance to is renewal. The period of validity may be reduced to on Month, and this is no doubt annoying to the haulier who wishes to make long-term plans, but at best he will have to mark time until the Government makes up its mind• As a lull of six months is inevitable, he should resolve to use it intelligently. He must make sure the Government does not forget him. Nor should he ignore what is being done by the other interests concerned. The trade unions are building op resistance to denationalization. The haulier .would be well advised to find out how far this opposition goes and how many workers in the R.H.E. would prefer to return to free enterprise Deep Cunning He ought to keep his customers in their present frame of mind. They are still highly critical of nationalized road transport, but to some extent may be hampered in the expression of their views. There is no need to postulate deep cunning on the part of the B.T.C., but has-certainly effectively muzzled the national organizations of trade and industry by ,making them partners in the winter transportscheme. The haulier has been made to appear an outsider, and any aspersions he casts upon the scheme may be held to reflect on all the parties to it. . He has an important part to play outside the scheme, and will undoubtedly be supported at any rate by the local branches of the national trade associations. There is no falling off in the volume of complaints le; individual customers of the service they receive from the R.H.E. If a complaint can be remedied by the grant of a permit to a haulier, the local traders' organization is not likely to hesitate about lending its aid. Counts executives of the National. Farmers' Union are already asking their parent body to press the Government for the speedy removal of the 25-mile limit.
Membership Boom
The haulier who belongs to an association should not neglect to make good use of it at this juncture. According to reports, the Road Haulage Association is enjoying a small boom in membership. The instinct of which this development is a. measurable sign is sound. A trade association will always help individual membeis with their problems, but its main national function k to build up a picture which can be presented dramatically to the Government, the Opposition, trade and industry, agriculture, the Press and anybody else who cares to listen.
• When the Government is unsympathetic or indifferent, or even hostile, to hauliers, it is difficult for the R.14.A. to make much headway. The present Government is none of these things. It has promised to take action within a reasonably short time. If the haulier's position deteriorates, the Government will no doubt do what if can to help without waiting for legislation, even if as a result the powers of the B.T.C. be diminished. A haulier in real trouble would be foolish if now, more than at any time, he did not ventilate it in the Press and make the details known to his association.