Reference tariffs 'not sinister'
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THE LETTER from Jackson Moore (CM April 12) gives a sinister interpretation to the EEC Commission's intentions in relation to reference tariffs, an interpretation not, I suggest, supported by the facts.
The RHA, as the body appointed by the Government representing road hauliers, drew up the tariff scales in discussions with the appropriate haulage associations in the other member states. The EEC Regulation provides that the tariffs should then be submitted to the representatives of the users (FTA in this country) and representatives of forwarders (Institute of Freight Forwarders).
The tariffs must eventually be approved by the national government before they can be published. Moreover, the scales of charges and the conditions are for reference only and are not mandatory as was made clear in the article in your journal of February 23.
It is difficult to see how this procedure gives the EEC Commission any power over prices charged or any opportunity to offset railway deficits. The Commission has moved from obligatory tariffs to reference tariffs which, in Community terms, is a move towards greater liberalisation. The RHA continues to support free enterprise and fair competition and will follow these principles in its representations of members' interests in Brussels and elsewhere.
R. P. DUFFY Senior Executive Officer Road Haulage Association