Disappearing meat hauliers
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THE number of Irish hauliers transporting refrigerated meat has dropped by an alarming 43 per cent within the past five years, according to the Irish Livestock Board's register. There are now just over 50 companies operating almost 400 refrigerated trailers in the Republic.
Commenting on this trend, Aedan Archer, the livestock board's senior transport executive said: "It is vital that an environment is created which will allow hauliers to operate on a profitable basis. Government action is needed to ensure that the refrigerated haulage industry will survive. If more are forced out of business, Ireland will have no alternative but to look for hauliers from outside the country to transport our beef."
Mr Archer listed the following main areas of contention directly affecting refrigerated hauliers: • The need to link road tax to gross vehicle weight instead of tare weight. Refrigerated vehicles weigh about 15.5 tonnes as against 8.25 tonnes for a dry freight vehicle. Consequently the refrigerated haulier is paying a far higher road tax without any offsetting increase in payload capacity.
• Refrigerated hauliers should be entitled to claim tax relief on their trailers in the same way that manufacturing companies claim on capital equipment.
• Irish refrigerated transport, by its nature, is exportoriented, and the Government should extend export tax reliefs to it.
"The recent blockade by French hauliers has had serious consequences for Irish refrigerated hauliers," continued Mr Archer. "The Government must firmly pursue claims for compensation against the French."