Plea falls on deaf ears
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by Karen Miles • A recovery operator who has complained to his MP about the poor state of British haulage says he is wondering why he bothered.
Ken Wills, proprietor of Truro-based Cornwall Commercials, was motivated by the appeal from north-west haulier Eddie Stobart for hauliers to write to their MPs. He contacted his local MP, Liberal Democrat Matthew Taylor, who forwarded his letter to Roads Minister Larry Whitty.
But having read Whitty's response, Wills says the minister fails to understand the plight of Britain's hauliers and does not seem worried by the consequences of the Government's policy of raising fuel duty and vehicle excise duty.
In his letter to Wills, Whitty wrote that UK hauliers have much lower social costs and pay less corporation tax than their Continental counterparts, adding: "It is in that context that assessments of competitive advantage or disadvantage should be made."
Wills points out that corporation tax is mainly an issue for larger companies (he operates eight trucks) and wonders: "If foreign hauliers have higher social costs, how can they afford to come over here and operate like they do?
"Politicians aren't really concerned about the grass roots of it, for the people who have to work for their living," he concludes. "They've spent 30 years encouraging vehicles to run riot and now they've suddenly decided to turn the tap off. It needs a slow, planned approach."