Enforce the rules on the Continent!
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It's nice to hear that Neil 1.Kinnock has his finger on the pulse of European Union transport!
The curtailment to 60 hours for a driver on the strength that our EU "brothers" were bitching that they are overworked will have little effect on them as they do not appear to have a department as keen as our ministry and police in ensuring the rules set by the EC are upheld. In both my driving abroad, and subsequently managing a fleet that spends most of its life on the continental side of the Channel, I have rarely heard of drivers being pulled on a "routine" check, much less the local ministry checking that the governor keeps to the rules.
It would seem that for all their extended training for the Operator's Licence they are then left to get on with it on their OWEl.
The vast majority of French hauliers, along with their Dutch neighbours, seem to ignore all the rules—like speed limiters/hours and probably GVW. When did you last see a truck on the Continent doing less than 65mph?
If you want to help drivers throughout the European Union, have the current rules enforced.
It often feels like the French do not care what their hauliers actually do, as long as they pronounce it correctly. B Bridle King's Lynn