Hauliers slam 'social' costs tax
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k.ULAGE operators have mmed the Government's Ln to up the taxation on their des to cover "social costs."
knd they have also hit out at allegation in the Transport licy Green Paper that 'mute from heavy goods 'ides no longer covers their ire of road costs.
rhis week the Freight Tran)rt Association and the ad Haulage Association it a joint memorandum to Environment Secretary, .er Shore, and the Transport sister, John Gilbert, outlintheir strong opposition to taxation schemes.
11 forms of transport, says memorandum, cause ironmental nuisance and ; was true of other indusLI activities.
One does not tackle a luting chimney by taxing it." Such problems were normally dealt with by sensible regulation and whatever the level of taxation it would not bring about a transfer of freight to rail.
"The allocation of social costs would have to be made arbitrarily," says the memorandum. It was "palpably unreasonable" to impose a new and illogical tax on road transport while subsidising rail freight.
On track costs the document says that the Government's figures are already out of date because there has been an increase in fuel duty and there had been cuts in road expenditure.
Each class of vehicle could be expected to cover its costs in the immediate future and the total tax bill paid by the industry for the use of roads greatly exceeded the attributable costs.