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THE BRITISH commercial vehicle industry is losing sales while operators await the delayed Government decision on an increase in gross vehicle weight limits, Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders president Geoffrey Moore said last week.
Addressing the SMMT's annual general meeting, he said: "We support the findings of the Armitage Inquiry on the need for better roads and more bypasses, and for the economic and environmental benefits which would accrue from a raising of the maximum weight limits for lorries.
"While the Government procrastinates on this issue, our commercial vehicle industry is losing sales because operators are delaying purchases until the Government reacts to the Armitage recommendations," he added.
Mr Moore referred to the fact that new commercial vehicle sales so far this year are 7.5 per cent up on last year, but a long way below 1980, and said that sales are expected to total 22 8,00 0 this year, against 300,565 in 1979, which was a record year.
"At these sales levels, the prospect of our industry's early recovery is not good," he said.
He went on: "This is a worldwide situation, and manufacturers worldwide are making tremendous efforts to get a larger share of a temporarily smaller cake.
"In Britain, we have a doubly challenging job to do. Not only must we be very competitive to hold our position in today's tough markets, but we must strive to be better than the best to retrieve ground lost to other world manufacturers in previous decades," he said.
Mr Moore said that foreign manufacturers have too high a proportion of the British market, even allowing for our EEC membership, and British vehicles have too small a share of the world market.
"It is critical that British industry re-establishes itself a world reputation for being the best in products, quality, value, delivery, and service. Much progress has been made in the past two years. Fine new products have come on stream. Product quality is good. Value to the customer, though not yet to the shareholder, is excellent. Britain's reputation for delivery is much improved," he said.
On import controls, Mr Moore said: "The time has also come for determined action by Government to react against those nations which prevent or hinder the import of our products — though crippling rates of import duty, quotas, or by other means —. while still enjoying free access to our market."