Hours 'exceeded'
Page 10
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
OF THE 139 vehicles carrying livestock to the Continent and followed by the Royal Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in the past seven years, all "exceeded the drivers hours regulations by double, treble even quadruple". This allegation is part of a recent RSPCA report to the British Veterinary Society.
The report goes on: "The vast majority of vehicles had a single driver who had driven for 24, or 30 hours with only a few hours' rest or sleep. It is perhaps not surprising that lorries carrying 200 calves have been seen weaving all over the road with drivers nearly asleep."
Under EEC rules only eight hours' driving is permitted in one day. The French Ministry of Transport, says the report, was shocked that solo drivers from Britain attempted such journeys.
The Ministry also pointed out that a relay of three or more drivers would be the only legal way of undertaking the trips, with one crew leaving the lorry completely and another taking over, the RSPCA said.
An RSPCA spokesman told CM that there were two hire or reward hauliers who do the vast majority of trade to the South West of France. He declined to name them.
Their names have been submitted to the Department of Transport for consideration — although the RSPCA thinks the DTp can do little about activities abroad.
Left: An RSPCA poster highlighting its allegations.