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A new player in town?
Page 24
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A new organisation boldly claims it will solve operators' problems,
but its aims are still a little woolly. Chris Tindall reports.
It would be an understatement to say that the Road Haulage Association's chief executive was surprised when he heard that its former chairman, John Bridge, had decided to launch his own lobby group.
"I am staggered," says Roger King. "He was at our regional council meeting last week. He was making a positive contribution to the discussion taking place. I have never heard him suggest that the RHA has failed on anything."
And yet this is exactly what Bridge is suggesting. Tired of what he sees as a failure of both the RHA and ETA's efforts to tackle contentious issues like the Working Time Directive and, more importantly, the impending fuel crisis, Bridge has decided to do the jol5 himself and has become the figurehead for a new organisation.
British Hauliers has been launched by the Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce, of which Bridge is the chief executive. However, he reckons he was forced into this position.
"I haven't sought this; it involved a lot of heartache. I have a lot of people all over the country asking me to get involved. Trade associations need to ask themselves why these hauliers are not going to them," he says.
Promises...of what?
But what can British Hauliers possibly offer the industry that the FTA and RHA-with all their years of experience and established relationships with government ministers cannot?
At the moment, the answer to this is, astonishingly, still being thrashed out.
"This happened just over a week ago," Bridge admits. "We are developing a strategy. We haven't even started to market it. In a week you don't get a strategy."
However, Bridge does, rather uninspiringly, suggest that both the other industry associations have not been robust enough when dealing with the government. He says that operators need to talk to ministers direct. "The key thing is they will listen to our members," he says.
But he offers no evidence of why this should be so.
Bridge also worked for the RHA, so surely he's criticising himself? "AIII can say is I did the work and developed it and we got concessions." His complaint is that things then slipped back without him. He also claims the RHA did not like him "getting involved" because he does not advocate "cosy relationships". In that case it follows that he must approve protests on issues such as fuel. "I believe in friendly, legal demos. Nothing illegal that's
not the way forward and I won't support it," he insists.
That view may soon be tested. Speaking to some of British Hauliers' supporters CM gets a more robust response. Peter Knight, of Les Knight Transport in Kent, predicts imminent fuel protests. "I don't think the government will listen to anybody until it feels the strength of the country," he says.
Naturally, the RHA and FTA are somewhat bemused at Bridge's actions and condemn quotes in the press from operators who believe they are not efficient enough to effect change. King concludes: "I don't think it's an organisation it's John Bridge. You can't just run a pressure group with one person. I don't know any trick they can pull that we and the FTA haven't already. The word froth comes to mind." •