ireat chance to boost rade lost
Page 35
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HE FAILURE of David Howell, -ransport Secretary, to innounce his decision on lorry veights at the Conservative 'arty conference at Brighton vas a disservice to industry. He vas by no means reluctant to sxplain new restrictions on rehicle design and use, but was ;Rent on the most critical sconomic question. One who was not silent was 'eter Foden, chairman and nanaging director of ERF, who sinned back the Government's oars like fly papers in a minor our de force. Maximum legal vehicle veights were last raised late in kugust 1964, just before the ::ommerclei Motor Show. LashJos alleged to be designed to he new weights were hustled by sarassed makers into Earl's :ourt but development work on hem did not begin until after the ;how and, if my memory serves ne right, was not generally :ompleted until the next sxhibition in 1966.
This time, manufacturers slready had models suitable for speration at 38 tonnes. If they sould have been shown as such st the National Exhibition :entre, trade would have "eceived a desperately needed
If weights are not to be "aised, the Transport Secretary should have said so, putting nakers and operators out of :heir misery — and Britain finally )ut of the international transport rarket.
Nhere on earth (or
3Isewhere) is he?
:OMMANDER Zewdu
3/Mariam, where are you? You lent a duplicated letter to IPC Transport Press Ltd asking for a specimen copy of Commercial Wotor and details of
subscription rates. It was rubber-stamped with an srnamental 2in circular "seal" with the words "Road Transport kuthority" and three rows of
minute smudged hieroglyphics which could have been made by an inebriated fly that had walked on an inking pad. Beside it, you signed your name as general manager.
So all we hold now is your address. Even the country of
• origin would be better than nothing. Meanwhile, I have put Capt Kirk and his Star Trekkers on the job.1 have a lot of faith in that chap with the funny ears.
All depends on who says it
OPENING the Road Haulage Association annual conference, Harold Russett, national chairman, spoke of the association's "consistently successful" work "from which all hauliers, including those who are not members, have benefited." He added: "So there is, surely, a clear moral obligation on all hauliers to join• their trade association."
I seem to remember tradeunion leaders using the same words to justify the closed shop. How acceptable they are depends on who uses them.