Faint praise for livestock laws
Page 10
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
by Ian Wylie • Livestock hauliers have given new European regulations on animal transport a qualified welcome, but the major ferry companies say they will maintain their ban on live exports.
The Livestock Carriers Group claims the new regulations, which will not take effect until the end of 1997, will bring continental practice in line with current standards among British livestock hauliers.
However, it warns that the limits on journey times will penalise farmers and hauliers furthest away from continental ferry services.
The Brussels deal imposes an eight-hour limit on journey times for animals transported in ordinary vehicles.
The animals must then be rested for 24 hours before another eight-hour trip can begin. Longer journey times will be permitted in specially equipped vehicles, depending on the age and type of livestock.
The agreement requires all vehicles to have proper ventilation and watering equipment and proposes a licensing system for livestock exporters. Hauliers will be expected to train their staff properly and draw up plans for all journeys over eight hours.
LCG chairman Eddie Harper praised Agriculture Minister William Waldegrave for carrying out "tough negotiating" with his EU counterparts. "It seems that we will at last have a level playing field." he says. "Licensing is a great idea. Hauliers with hazardous loads need special licences so why shouldn't livestock hauliers be licensed too?"
But Harper says the maximum time limits will hit hauliers who are based in the more remote parts of the country.
The Livestock Carriers Group and Road Haulage Association will launch a driver training scheme for livestock hauliers next Wednesday (5 July) at the Royal Agricultural Show.
Ferry companies which are operating livestock bans say the bans will remain in place until the new rules become effective.