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Legitimate Haulage and Unfair Competition

15th March 1935, Page 31
15th March 1935
Page 31
Page 32
Page 31, 15th March 1935 — Legitimate Haulage and Unfair Competition
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Keywords : Business / Finance

THE licensing of carriers and the numerous restrictions placed upon their activities might not be felt so severely if many of them did not feel aggrieved at the manner in which the requirements of the Road and Rail Traffic Act, 1953, are being circumvented in various directions. Naturally, some time must elapse before the whole scheme falls into its stride. Perhaps, then, some of the leakage which occurs at present may be stopped.

For example, livestock is being transported in trailers behind private cars which are being oper ated without carriers' licences, whilst private cars themselves are being employed to an everincreasing extent for the conveyance of goods. Many large cars can carry a considerable volume, or even weight, of various classes of commodity ; yet, provided that there is no material alteration in their construction or equipment to adapt them for such purpose, no question of taking out a carrier's licence is involved.

it is our opinion that any such vehicle employed in the course of trade should be treated in the same manner as a commercial vehicle. It appears to us as manifestly unfair that the mere fitting of a box to, say, a traveller's car, should bring the vehicle within the purview of the Act, when so many others are exempt.

We do not suggest that the private owner carrying his own parcels and not acting in the capacity of a Class A, B or C licensee should have his status altered, but in respect of other users there should be little difficulty in adjusting matters on a more equitable basis.

The Sugar-beet Position

THE sugar-bed campaign which has just closed was such a success that it appears to have upset the calculations of the powers that be. Most readers will have noted that Parliament has had to vote an extra £1,500,000 to provide for the extra subsidy. It seems that this was, to a large extent, due to the fact that the average yield was slightly over 10 tons per acre. In the previous campaign the yield was only 9 tons per acre, and it was not anticipated that the higher figure would be reached for some time. A total of over 4,000,000 tons of beet was delivered during this recent campaign.

The fly in the ointment is that growers have been asked to accept a rate for the coming campaign which is equivalent to a reduction of is. per ton of beet delivered. As is customary, when any such modification in price occurs, hauliers will undoubtedly be invited to take a share. It behoves them, therefore, to be prepared in advance with carefully calculated figures of costs, so that they can rebut the suggestion that their rates are open to any such modification.

Profitable Mechanized Farming

THE Ford Motor Co.. Ltd., is to be congratulated on the striking success of the farming experiment which it is conducting on co-operative lines in Essex. The farms occupy some 800 acres, all devoted to market gardening, but other parts of the estate will, later, be utilized for fruit growing and dairy farming.

The workers lease the land from ./Fordson Estates, Ltd., through their co-operative societies, and the capital for tools, etc., is lent by the company, to be repaid over a long period with interest at 4 per cent.

All workers draw weekly wages 25 per cent. above the legal agricultural rates, and the profits are shared in proportion to the wages earned. Thirty workers on Saturday last received sums ranging from £5 to £150 as their share in the profits for the past 11-months' working (to December 31), and philanthropy has no part in the financial arrangements. An outstanding feature of the scheme is the employment of Fordson tractors and of general mechanization methods for promoting production.

Close attention has been given to the scheme by many prominent people interested in new agricultural methods, notably by Mr. Lloyd George, who has described the development as farsighted and excellent.

It would be a wonderful thing for this country, with its enormous number of unemployed, if the project could be extended into other areas and still be so well organized as to give a sufficient yield to permit the payment of such comparatively high wages and yet afford a profit which would further encourage enterprise.

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