Hauliers plan more action while Reid offers nothing
Page 4
Page 5
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
w Trans-Action, the group of hauliers who organised Monday's protest, are promising to carry on the fight and may co-ordinate another day of action—this time across the whole of the UK.
Minutes after transport minister John Reid announced there is to be an industry forum that will examine the effects of VED and fuel duty. Trans-Action's Frank &ears Questioned the point of further talks, saying: The minister keeps telling us he doesn't think there is a problem—the trade associations have been telling them for years and it hasn't done any good so fan' Earlier Reid announced the forum will be attended by the Road Haulage and Freight Transport associations, the unions and Treasury staff.
Despite calling it a "bridge to the future". Reid warned: "I wouldn't want to pretend that there's a magic wand—there isn't. We can't re-write history. We feel we have a very competitive and efficient haulage industry in this country but there is over-capacity. I don't accept the assertion that it is cheaper to run abroad."
Steve Norris, director general of the RHA, said at the end of a 75-minute meeting with Reid and the FTA's David Green: "We got as much as we could expect but if it just ends up being a talking shop we will walk away from it."
The forum will look at the competitiveness of both domestic and international operators and hope to find common agreement on the statistics that relate to it.
Immediately after the announcement, it became clear hauliers are ready to continue the demonstrations. Trans-Action has already had a call from a Manchester dealer who says he is ready to organise "a day bigger than London".
Arid Fistiguard-based haulier Martin Hall, of Wf Hall & Son, says 200 Welsh hauliers are to stage a peaceful RHAbacked demonstration outside the Welsh Office in Cardiff on 17 April. "We want to see the rest of the country carrying out similar peaceful demonstrations on the same day against the fuel escalator," he says. • Monday's protest was the largest demonstration in the history of the UK's haulage industry, with around 1,500 trucks turning Park Lane into a giant truck park, bringing much of London's West End to a standstill.
Despite just six days' notice of the demonstration, operators from across the UK rescheduled vehicles to send them to London. By 10:00hrs the whole of the northbound carriageway of Park Lane was blocked by three Janes of trucks parked bumper to bumper. Within the hour the southbound carriageway was full, and the normally busy road was strangely quiet.
An hour later, trucks were still arriving festooned with banners and messages for the Government. These were forced to overspill onto the approach roads. Kent Trans-Action member Chris Giles had a coffin on the back of a flat bed trailer with the message: "The British Government is killing our road haulage industry."
In contrast to previous protests, many of the larger hauliers including James Irlarr had sent vehicles, but Eddie Stobart's absence was slammed by many operators present. "It's costing us several hundred pounds to be here. Stobart could easily have sent a couple of trucks," was a widelyheld view.
Earlier, traffic backed up on all the main routes into the capital behind trucks heading to the demonstration. On the M1, an 11-mile tailback was caused as trucks drove two-a-breast, with friendly vans blocking the outside lane.
After a few hours, about 150 drivers marched on Downing Street to demand an audience with the Prime Minister but he was not at home. One of that group, Joe Stephen from JS Cook Transport, Wellingborough, said he can't carry on at the present VED rate and has already cut his trucks from 22 to eight: "I've got 10 kids to support and I've never been on the dole."
Another un-named haulier said he had been rung on the way to the demo by his bank
manager aci
told he is to be foreclosed by the bank.
Frank Stears, one of the leaders of Trans-Action, declared himself "over the moon" with the turnout and said it showed the Road Haulage and Freight Transport associations that a protest could be entirely legal and peaceful.