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A decade off for running 20
Page 23
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trucks on eight-truck licence
Inquiry heard of a string of offences including false records, hours infringements and speeding. Mike Jewell reports.
AN OPERATOR who ran more than twice as many vehicles as were authorised on his 0-licence has lost his licence and been disqualified from holding one in any Traffic Area for 10 years.
James Murdoch Junior, trading as J&J Murdoch Ltd, held an international licence for eight vehicles and 16 trailers based at Castle Douglas and Gretna. Scottish Traffic Commissioner Joan Aitken rejected that company's application for a 15-vehicle, 20trailer licence for a lack of financial evidence.
Second rejection lh TC also rejected an application for a 10-vehicle, 12-trailer international licence by associate company Gretna Distribution of Ecclefechan.
Elaine Easton, Murdoch's live-in partner, was company secretary ofJ&J Murdoch and a director of Gretna Distribution and a third firm, Murdoch Transport.
Traffic examiner James Marshall told an Edinburgh public inquiry of anonymous complaints that Murdoch was operating up to 19 vehicles at a time that he had instructed drivers to say their vehicles were on hire if not displaying a disc; and that drivers were working excessive hours.
Investigations showed that in the summer of 2006 Murdoch had been operating 20 vehicles. When tachograph records were requested,they were produced for only 11 vehicles and those records showed significant missing mileage.
There were regular cases of false records, hours infringements and excessive speed.
Murdoch said that when the limited company was formed he had been unaware that he had to change the 0-licence. They had the opportunity to expand the business so they hired in vehicles over the licence authority.
The TC said that Murdoch Transport. c which Easton was the sole director, had bee granted a Northern Irish road freight licenc in January 2007. Gretna Distribution, whic held the Northern Ireland licence, was scheme to enable Murdoch to keep operatic behind corporate veils created by a compar in which his co-habitee Easton was name as director. •