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by CM reporter
useful with a cordial atmosphere and much frank speaking." An EEC spokesman confirmed that the main topics of conversation had been social regulations and drivers' hours in particular.
No official announcement of a further delay had been made at the time of CM going to press. But the DTp may be a little premature in expecting to hear before Monday.
For although the current leferment from the requirements of EEC regulation 543/69 runs out at midnight on February 28 the Commission is lot scheduled to meet until Wednesday (March 2). Our Brussels correspondent reports that Mr Burke, has been pressing for a tough line on member States which do not honour their Community legislation obligations. It may well be that he will want to report back and confer before any decision is taken.
One point in Britain's favour is that the Commission itself has put forward plans to change 543/69.
At the moment 543/69 requires an eight-hour driving day, as opposed to the UK's 10-hour day. and a maximum daily journey of 450km.
But a number of countries are pressing for changes to make the rules more flexible. There is a suggestion that the rules should apply only to international journeys, with members States fixing their own internal laws.
In the light of the possible changes the Commission may decide that Britian should be granted its request for a deferment until the end of the year.
This would give them time to finalise their plans for 543/69 and would mean that the UK would not be pressed to introduce the existing regulation and then the changes to it within a few months of each other.
The DTp spokesman emphasised that 543/69 has nothing to do with tachographs. "We have never applied for deferment of the tacho regulations," he said. "The Republic of Ireland did and they were turned down."