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Policy Decision This Month

15th July 1955, Page 32
15th July 1955
Page 32
Page 32, 15th July 1955 — Policy Decision This Month
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

BY OUR PARLIAMENTARY CORRESPONDENT

THE whole trend of Monday's debate in the House of .Commons on the British Transport Commission's report for 1954 was towards a halt in denationalization. Conservatives spoke in favour of retaining trunk services under B.R.S. and leading Opposition spokesmen declared that the big men were reluctant to return to haulage.

When Mr. J. A. Boyd-Carpenter, the Minister, wound up the debate, the House was waiting for one pdssage, which he reached towards the end of his speech.

Of the 32,500 vehicles thought in 1953 to be available for disposal, he said, 15.668 had been sold. He understood that it was likely that another 1,000 or so would probably be sold in list II.

Main Object Achieved

"It seems to me that the main object of the 1953 Act has in fact been achieved," he declared. "The 25-mile limit on private hauliers has been abolished. The small man has come back into the industry. Competition for long-distance road haulage has been reintroduced, and I do not think that any dispassionate critic will dispute that road haulage enterprises in this country generally, both public and private, arc giving better service to their customers now than they were doing two years ago.

" Finally the Commission has been subjected to the licensing system and placed for that purpose in the same position as anyone else.

"The present position relates to about 8,000 vehicles. They are not a very large number compared with the 171,600 Aand B-licence vehicles and the 700,000 C-licence vehicles on the roads. After allowing for a small number of lorries which have become unsaleable, there remain for disposal only about 8,000 vehicles. A substantial

"1/430

proportion of these are at present operating on the main trunk routes of B.R.S. I believe that a large body of opinion would think it a pity if the value of the services were not to be retained.

"The Government are now considering the position, particularly of vehicles operating trunk services, and I hope to make a statement before the House rises for the summer recess." [At the end of this month.] The key to this speech had come earlier in that of Mr. David Renton, a prominent member of the Conservative back bench transport committee. He had urged that they should take stock of the position which had been reached, and he had enumerated the achievements which Mr, Boyd-Carpenter later set out, on the return of freedom to the industry.

"The small man," he said, " has taken the fullest advantage of the opportunities which we gave him. The big man, however, has proved a reluctant dragon. He does not seem to be willing to return to road haulage and to undertake the responsibilities of it.

"As a result of the reluctance of the big man, the Commission still has its trunk services. What we have to consider is whether, if the big man do..,.•5 not buy them, it would be right to break them up.

"I would rather see the trunk services maintained, either in private hands or in the hands of the Commission, if good private offers are not forthcoming."

Then there was the speech of Mr. Godfrey Nicholson (C., Farnham), who declared that it would be "a thousand pities" if the great trunk network were destroyed.

"It seems to me that such an action would he contrary to Conservative principles," he said. " We in our party always criticize the Labour Party for

their rigid adherence to theory. 1 believe that there is one great Conservative principle which overrides all others, and it is that in any given set of circumstances we should do what is best for the nation without regard for theory.

" I believe that we have reached such a stage. We did not denationalize the mining industry or the railways. We resisted their nationalization and 1 think we were right to do so, but I think we were equally right not to denationalize them.

" I see no point in denationalizing an industry unless we can be quite certain that the denationalized industry will give greater service to the community than the nationalized industry.

"1 believe that in this trunk network we have a great and valuable service for the nation," To the Minister he said: "I hope you will bear in mind that there is a large body of opinion among those who support the Government who would back you if you said that the trunk network should he kept as one organization. After all, if we try to take this matter out of party politics, and to abandon political theory, we see that a greater variety of courses could be taken.

"The service need not necessarily be rim by the Commissirin. It need not necessarily be a technically nationalized industry and it need not necessarily be a semi-independent corporation. There is a vast field for investigation and speculation before we decide what to do."

End of Small Sales When he opened the debate for the Opposition, Mr. Callaghan (Lab., S.E. Cardiff) said the Minister had reached a turning point in his consideration of the disposal of road haulage vehicles. They had reached this because "it is generally accepted that the Minister has sold all the lorries he can sell to the small men and the next series of sales that will have to take place will mean a breaking up of the trunk services which have been newly constructed by B.R.S. and which are proving such a great success."

It was Mr. George Strauss (Lab., Vauxhall) who, winding up the debate, quoted the report of the deputation to the Minister from the Association of British Chambers of Commerce, at which members expressed anxiety lest the sale of trunk service vehicles, if pressed to extremes, should lead to the dispersal of existing co-ordinated services on which industry and commerce were dependent and which at the present time provided satisfactory road haulage facilities.


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