ritain charts tacho escape
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BRITAIN'S escape from bringing in Common Market hours and tachograph regulations is still strongly on the cards following a meeting in Brussels last week.
For the EEC's Economic and Social Committee kicked out draft rules put forward by the Commission to replace the notorious 543/69 social regulation governing driving conditions.
The draft proposed a slight softening (CM March 12) in the hard line regulation on working hours and the daily driving distance limit.
But the Economic and Social Committee prompted by the British believed that this did not go far enough. And instead of making amend ments to the draft — including the idea that tachographs and the eight-hour driving day should apply only to international journeys — they sent the whole thing to the Commission.
The Committee asked for a new set of rules less rigid and far more flexible for both member States and drivers.
The UK members of the Economic Social Committee made up of trade unions and employer representatives from the nine Common Market countries generally favoured limiting the Regulations to international traffic. They thought this could help Britain with its problems in implementing the hours and tachograph regulations.
Mr Jack Jones of the TGWU claimed the Commission did not take into account the fact that the driver was a human being.
In his opening speech Mr Jones said: "To insist at this stage on the national application of regulations which are evaded to a considerable extent in Community countries because of lack of willingness and ability to enforce them would be unrealistic and unfair to those who are anxious to ensure rigid and proper observance of Community regulations."
A Commission spokesman said that the Committee's opinion was only advisory and that their own proposal would more than likely go to a future meeting of the Council Ministers in its present form. However, the council would probably take account any points raised by the Economic and Social Committee.
The TGWU, with the employers, have led the fight for the relaxation of 543/69 so that hours and tacho rules will apply only to international journeys.
It raised the idea in the Economic and Social Committee's transport sub-committee recently, where it was agreed to put the plan forward.