HFA urges army of truckers to back new demo
Page 6
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
by Liam O'Brien The organisers of the Dump the Duty campaign are planning another driving demo in September in addition to the two scheduled Dover Port blockades.
On 25 September there will be a "Drive to Survive" convoy from the north to the south of England; It will coincide with town-centre protests en route in Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, London and Dover.
The Hauliers and Farmers Alliance hopes for support from "the army of truckers" who have yet to take any form of protest action.
HFA chairman Ion Johnson expects a core of 500 hauliers and a smaller number of farmers to be at each event. He urges hauliers to turn up to at least one of the events to boost numbers—If not in their trucks then in their cars.
Johnsen says: "The apathy is terrible out there, but what we are saying is that if you don't turn up at least for one of these it could be the last chance you get before you go eat of business."
The HFA aims to win the backing of the Countryside Alliance and already has support from Trans-Action. It is calling on the government to peg UK fuel taxation at French levels, which it says are still above the EU average. It calculates that this would cut fuel taxes from £35,000 per truck per year to £17,250, based on using 1,200 litres per week over 48 weeks.
A moving blockade at Dover on 1 August is expected to gridlock the port; this will be repeated on 1September.
For more information on the demonstrations contact; Tim Smith on 0712 0074830 or Len Johnson on 07801 868908.
• Tim Smith, the haulier behind the Dump the Duty campaign, has been forced to quit his father's haulage company, DTS Haulage, because it is uneconomical to replace his truck, but DTS Haulage will continue to trade.
Smith is now a regional co-ordinator for the HFA, and is looking for part-time work.