Hints for Hecklers
Page 52
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FREE-ENTERPRISE road transport has had five lean years since the 1945 General Election. The next five years will be even leaner if the Socialists go back. Operators have a keener interest than usual, therefore, in the result of the forthcoming political struggle
At least one haulier has been chosen as a candidate for Parliament. Others will be busy canvassing the views of the various parties, attending meetings and asking questions. It is an advantage to have some idea of what the answers will be. The Labour Party has obligingly issued a "Speakers' Handbook," which will be widely used by candidates and other speakers, particularly on matters of which they have no special knowledge.
The book is designed to build up in the minds of its readers a picture that they will endeavour to reproduce in the minds of their audiences. The facts are chosen and arranged to support certain assumptions that will persuade people to vote for Socialists rather than for candidates of other parties.
The necessity of transport nationalization has to be made convincing by the argument that previously the industry was in a state of chaos. " It would be foolish," it is pointed out, "to return to the days when commodities were transported hundreds of miles by lorry owners who then had to scramble for return loads while railway trucks were running empty."
Erroneous Assumptions
This, of course, begs a number of important questions. it assumes that long-distance transport Of goods by road is a bad thing (does Maj.-Gen. Russell know about this?), that an empty lorry is no more than the owner deserves, whilst an empty railway truck is a national calamity; that no railway trucks are ever empty 'nowadays; and that, before the master planners got to work on transport, hardly anything was carried anywhere. Note the skilful use of the words " foolish" and " scrainble " to give the pictures emotional colour.
The book goes on to quote from the "Financial Times," described as "the Chief'City paper
" lt has been said more than once in these notes that
unless there is a workable alternative to nationalization
the supporters of private enterprise for transport are not
likely to get far. No such plan has been forthcoming."
This statement appeared in the "Financial Times" on February 7, 1946, a few-months before the publication of the joint statement by the four main-line railway companies and the Road Haulage Association, which, it will be remembered, provided at least the foundation for the plan that the " Financial Times " was seeking. Needless to say, no mention of this three-year-old plan is made in the "Speakers' Handbook." It does say, however, that "the Transport Commission, British Railway and other Executives are already working on schemes of co-ordination." The italics are mine.
There is some anxiety to dispose of the Conservative promise to return road transport to free enterprise. Stress is laid on the difficulties of denationalization and the possibility of the Road Haulage Executives' being handed over to a private monopoly. No mention is made of other important points, such as the abolition of the 25-mile radial limit. Nor is there a hint of the repeal—which at this stage would be simple—of the
u10 clauses in the Transport Act affecting passenger operators who are engaged in the road transport field.
An attempt is made to reassure the haulier of his prospects. The following piece of rather cold comfort is attributed to Mr. Ernest Davies, M.P.:
" Unquestionably, a very large number of small operators will find themselves unaffected by nationalization. Some 2.000-2.500 undertakings with about 20.000 vehicles will probably be taken over, together with the 11,000 vehicles of the railway companies, and the 5,000 owned by Carter Paterson, Pickfords and others, which are railways controlled. On the other hand, more than 20,000 hauliers with about 50.000 vehicles will be automatically exempt and be able to continue in business. A further large number of operators are likely to apply for permits to continue in business, and the vast majority may well obtain them."
Why Not Road Transport ?
The haulier may well feel his plight is desperate if he has to turn to Mr. Ernest Davies for consolation. The partial nationalization of road transport and the steel industry is linked with plans for other industries where it might be found suitable to put only a section under State ownership, leaving the remainder in the
hands of private enterprise. It is naturally stressed that "competition between public and private enterprise should be on fair and equal terms," but there is no suggestion that this particular principle shbuld he extended to road transport.
Some uncertainty exists also as to whether the idea of a mixed economy is likely to survive for long. It is said. that in some eastern European countries the surviving element under private enterprise is encouraged • to thrive, on the same principle as fattening a turkey before Christmas. So that, against Mr. Ernest Davies's 'reassurance, we have '..*3 set the remark of Mr. Aneurin Bevan at the Blackpool Labour Party Conference that private enterprise should be kept vigorous "so long as there is a private sector."
Self-contradictory
Other parts of the quotation from Mr. Ernest Davies seem to conflict with what is stated elsewhere in the "Speakers' Handbook." His estimate of the number of vehicles taken over falls far short of another figure of 30,822 vehicles and 3,901 trailers resulting from the acquisition of 1,688 undertakings. Other statistics and dates in the book are likely to cause trouble to any speaker attempting to use them as the basis for an account of the present constitution of the road transport industry. The value of the " Speakers' Handbook" to the Labour Party should not be underestimated. A public speaker is at a great psychological advantage if he has a printed document to support his statements. The words: "Here it is in black and white," have seldom been unsuccessful in silencing criticism.
The answer might be to have a "Hecklers' Handbook." This might not only dispose of the " facts and figures and arguments in the Labour Patty document, but might also make some positive contributions. In particular, it should draw attention to the achieve. ments in the past, before nationalization, and put forward a positive programme for the future, if road transport be restored to free enterprise.