'It is ludicrous to talk about the "dictatorship" of any Commissioner'
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In the two years that I have been In the two years that I have been
European Commissioner for Transport I have seen and heard numerous Euromyths, but Graham Manchester's call on your readership to unite against "socialist dictatorship through the European Commission's road tax policies" (CM 17-23 October 1996) is quite special since there is not a single argument in the article that substantiates his claims.
I have to draw attention to a very basic fact that might help Mr Manchester to get a firmer grip on reality. All Community transport law is decided by the Council of Transport Ministers representing each one of the 15 member states—the Commission can do no more than make proposals for their consideration. Moreover; decisions on transport tolls and levels require unanimous support from all 1 5 states. It is therefore ludicrous to talk about the "dictatorship" of any Commissioner on any policy issue. Mr Manchester describes himself as "a committed intermodalist" so he may be interested to know that my colleagues and I are promoting combined transport through a variety of measures: the Pilot Actions for Combined Transport (PACT), the initiatives to revitalise the Community's railways as set out in the Commission's work programme, and legislation on harmonisation of equipment to facilitate intermoclal transfers. In addition, our Fair and Efficient Transport Pricing discussion paper makes very clear our support for the principle, and practice, of proportionate payment for use or, as Mr Manchester puts it, "the choice to pay for products and services as and when we require them". Perhaps there is more similarity between us than he thinks, and not just on our common hatred of dictatorship.