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IN WESTMINSTER
Page 31
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from our Parliamentary correspondent Passenger insurance • The Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill, which required vehicles to be insured in respect of death or injury to passengers, was given a second reading in the Commons last week.
Approval of the measure was given without discussion, and the Bill will now be examined in detail by a committee of MPs.
Anti-jack -knifing
• The Ministry of Transport hopes that progress with the accident investigations and trials of articulated vehicles fitted with anti-jack-knifing devices will enable some conclusions to be reached later this year. A Commons reply by Mr Bob Brown, the Parliamentary Secretary.
Glasgow PTA • Individual local authorities had not been consulted about the proposal to set up a passenger transport authority in the Glasgow area, said Mr William Ross, the Scottish Secretary, last week. The exception had been Glasgow Corporation, which had a special position as the only municipal transport operator in the area.
The Local Authority Association had been consulted. noted Mr Ross.
Unfair to farmers 11 The annual cost to agriculture of the ncreases in road haulage rates recorded )ver the past year was likely to be about
£7m, said Mr John Mackie, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, last week.
This estimate was described as an "iniquitous burden", by Mr Peter Mills (Tory, Torrington). The Government had placed this burden on the road haulage industry, and it was reflected back on agriculture.
Mr Mackie retorted that quite a lot of the increase was due to safety measures—he was sure that Mr Mills would not suggest that the Government would place a burden on an industry unless it were necessary.
Mr Leslie Spriggs (Labour, St. Helens) said he had evidence from his local branch of the National Farmers' Union showing that haulage costs to the industry had risen by 33 per cent per ton, while Mr Bryant Godman Irvine (Tory, Rye) noted that in addition to the cost of transport there had to be added the cost of modernization to farm buildings to get the larger vehicles in and out.
Spot-check warnings
• Mr Fred Mulley last week explained why advance warning is given to hauliers of spot checks carried out by his examiners.
Replying to Mr Donald Anderson (Labour, Monmouth) who had raised the matter in the Commons, Mr Mulley said that advance publicity helped to ensure that the law was being complied with.
There were, of course, many unpublicized spot checks as well, added the Minister.