UK must make a Community stand on lorry weights Jeremy Thorp
Page 20
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• The European Community wot involve each member country making contribution — a stand on some speci issue — and the weight and size of lorr might be the one issue on which Brita could set a standard to which Europea would ultimately conform. This view w expressed by Mr Jeremy Thorpe, M leader of the Liberal Party, when spoke at the annual dinner of the RE North Devon sub-area. Added Mr Thou "I happen to feel that we must increa lorry weights, but that would take us tit to improve our roads, and I think that t other members would have to conform wi our views on axle weights because the involve environmental questions in whi we may take a lead".
He believed that in five years the would be a common European position ( gross weights, axle weight and drivel hours, but it was important that the tran port industry made its views knov nationally so that they had internation impact in the Community.
Britain was not "wild about" Ion weights going up to 42 tons and we we not prepared to admit such lorries un we had had time to strengthen bridges ar build by-passes, he said. He believi that road transport people should show a understanding of the environmentalist point of view, but then explain to them th; the fault lay not with the road transpO industry but in the fact that its vehicl had to travel through 18th century a 19th century towns and villages because t 20th century roads had not yet been built.
There was a common interest here, sa Mr Thorpe, and he thought appare antagonists could be turned into supporter Our potential for competing in Euro also depended on getting our por economic, "and much of the national do labour scheme frankly smacks of the pr tectionism of the last century, and that h got to be brought up to date".