Road Transport's
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Voting Power as a Weapon Political
WITH the object of securMg a better W national policy on roads, the voting power of the road-transport industry should be used as a political lever at the next General Election, suggested Alderman Charles Holdsworth, 'of Halifax, chairman of the West Riding Area, Road Haulage Association, when he spoke at Huddersfield, last week. The National Road Transport Federation, he urged, should organize action whereby every candidate would be asked for a pledge to give support to the great road reforms which were necessary, including the application of all road-transport taxation revenue to the construction,. improvement and maintenance of roads. Speaking at the dinner which marked the passing of the North-Eastern Division of the C.M.U.A., through that Association's winding up under the Perry merger scheme, Alderman Holdsworth was responding to presentations in appreciation of his seven years' service as chairman of the Division. Alderman Thildsworth said that it was on the floor of the House of Commons that the destiny of the roadtransport industry was settled; it was there that the decision would be taken on which would depend whether or not they were going to continue to exist as an industry. He was looking for great things from the merger of operators' associations, but if they were to obtain something worth while for the industry, certain fundamentals were necessaiy. Foremost among these, he placed a fair application of the revenue from the taxation of road transport—amounting, as near as one could tell, to £90,000,000 per annum. When taxation of road vehicles was introduced about 20 years ago, a definite Government undertaking was given that all revenue from that taxation would be used for road works. The fact that that undertaking had not been carried out amounted to a breach of faith with the industry. The Nation was suffering as a result of past Government negligence in respect of toad reforms. Now that they could speak with one voice through the National Road Transport Federation, roadtransport operators must unitedly demand that the roads be made fit for the vehicles, as against the policy whereby the vehicles had to be made to fit the roads. • A remarkable tribute to Alderman Holdsworth was an anonymous donor's gift to him of £100 The insignia of office ,worn by the North-Eastern Division's chairmen ' was presented to him as a souvenir, and the alderman and his wife received a silver tea service from former members of the Division. The presentations were made by the former.vice-chairmen—Mr. L. J. Mathers (Leeds) and Mr R E. Clough (Bradford). As illustrative of Alderman Holdsworth's energies, Mr. Mather said he was a member of over 30 committees, held four or five committee chairmanships, and was a director of about 15 companies • Speaking of Alderman Holdsworth's leading part in the carrying through of the Perry merger plan, Major E. S. Eastwood, North-Eastern Regional Transport Commissioner, said there were already signs that the standing of the new Federation was something much higherthan that of the old 'rival associations, What had undoubtedly been a handicap in the past was the absence of a sufficiently representative organization with which operators of other forms of transport. and the Ministry of War Transport, could make contact, The new set-up should make for efficiency in that direction. Another pleasant ceremony was the presentation of a £1,000 cheque for the endowment of a C.M.0 A.. bed at Leeds General Infirmary, from the balance of the fund raised in the NorthEastern Division to assist members suffering damage by air raids.