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Treasury wants your vim
Page 10
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EXCLUSIVE
8 by Paul Boateng MR Financial Secretary to the Treasury
The haulage Industry is a vital part of the UK economy. The government readily acknowledges this. That is why we are so determined to promote the competitiveness and environmental sustainability of the UK haulage industry.
The government is determined to ensure that there is a level playing field for the industry and is concerned that foreign lorry operators can currently come into the UK and work here without paying any taxes. We believe that it is unfair if foreign-based hauliers are causing significant environmental damage here and not paying towards these costs.
In his recent pre-Budget Statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, outlined
a range of options to build on previous reforms and to modernise the taxation of the haulage industry so as to ensure that foreign hauliers start paying towards the costs that they impose in the UK.
To achieve this, he announced proposals to introduce a lorry roaduser charge in the UK. This would apply to lorry operators, irrespective of their nahonality, allowing us to tax foreign lorry operators using UK roads for the first time.
And In recognition that UK lorry operators already pay their fair share, the government would ensure that this new charge did not increase running costs for the UK haulage industry as a whole by means of reductions in other taxes levied on lorry ownership or use.
I believe that this is an important