FUDGING AND TEASING
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• Sometimes politicians can be such teasers. First we have Labour's shadow transport secretary John Prescott telling the Freight Transport Association that he supports 44-tonne ortics and would bring them in subject to routeing restrictions. Then we have Transport Minister Roger Freeman asking a seminar run by environmental pressure group Transport 2000: "Should we be facing up to public approbation on higher weights?" Good question minister; what's the answer?
Words come cheap when it comes to raising weights. At the first hint of o backbench revolt the Government will do what it always does: fudge it. With an election looming Freeman has his escape route ready. He told the greens: "Our present policy is that we are not shifting off 38 tonnes."
Could a trade-off be in the air, with higher weights for lower speeds? That's just the kind of fudge the government might condone, allowing it to fall into line with Europe on both issues and come up smelling of roses.