Union's fall-back test station plan
Page 3
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
CIVIL SERVICE trades union has thrown a lifeline to the industry offering to buy the 91 heavy goods vehicle test stations from the ivernment. But it will only do this if negotiations with Lloyd's .gister of Shipping founder, reports ALAN MILLAR.
Institution of Professional Civil :rvants assistant general cretary Bill Brett told CM that 3 members were concerned out the threat to their jobs if, the Government still said was issible, the 91 stations were Id individually.
They wanted a fall-back policy be available in case the longnning negotiations with oyd's failed, as they are nvinced that some stations )uld be closed if a profit-motited buyer took groups of stains.
Mr Brett, who said that IPCS )uld be happy if Lloyd's did iy the stations, added that the l-back plan was for IPCS to rm a friendly society to buy id manage the stations, and isure that uniform standards continued to apply throughout the network.
He said he expected IPCS would form a board of management to run the stations, and that the advisory board comprising the Road Haulage Association, Freight Transport Association, and the Confederation of British Road Passenger Transport would provide a quarterly input on behalf of the stations' consumers.
Mr Brett said that the IPCS has already discussed the plans with a major bank, which would lend it sufficient funds to lease the stations from the Government, but there have been no discussions yet with other interested parties. A meeting with the Transport and General Workers Union is scheduled to take place early next month.
He said that IPCS's plans are different from any other privatisation moves made by the Government, and stressed that there was no question of trying to act commercially. "We are not going into this to make a profit," he said.
There would be no problem, he added, if a future Labour Government was elected on a pledge to renationalise the stations. Provided that his members' interests would not be jeopardised by such a move, the stations could be returned to state control.
Neither the Department of Transport nor the FTA felt able to comment on the IPCS proposals, as there has been no direct approach to them, but an RHA spokesman said that, provided the uniformity of standards of the stations was maintained, the IPCS proposals would meet its aims.
The talks between DTp and Lloyd's officials are still going on, but a decision on whether to go ahead is likely to be taken fairly soon.