Talk On !
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ONE thing should be understood immediately about the report of the Road Haulage Association's licensing study group (see page 62): so far it is only a proposal. This proposal may yet undergo radical alteration by the executive and national council of the Association before it finally becomes official policy. Even then, Government legislation may or may not follow the R.H.A. official document.
Having made this important point of perspective, congratulations must be extended to Mr. F. Wheeler, the group's chairman, and all the members. The report is controversial; ft will provoke much discussion; few people will agree with it entirely. But it is the honest opinion of men who, in statesmanlike manner, have sought to produce a licensing pattern that will fit 1963 conditions and also take account of the increasing pressure of the European mainland on our internal matters. Only by such radical clarity of thought can 30-year-old shackles be overthrown.
The danger is that, in doing this, other shackles may unwittingly be donned. Hauliers should think deeply before they advocate as closed a shop as the report envisages; they should seek an outwardlooking industry, not one that wants only protection and discourages genuine newcomers. They should think whether they are wise to allow the railways' freedom of objection to remain—it is to some extent an anachronism.
Much thought and much, much discussion is still needed before hauliers commit themselves to something they may later regret. This report is good, but it should serve as a foundation—not a complete structure.