National Licensing Scheme Needed
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THE railway onslaught . on the A-licensee will commence shortly, when renewals of this class of licence become due. The need for efficient legal representation of applicants in the traffic courts has thus become urgent and more important, perhaps, than ever before. The existing representation services provided by the associations may, within their limitations, be excellent, but a coordinated scheme on a national basis for presenting applications would strengthen the position of the industry generally, and of individual applicants in particular.
A suggestion has been put forward for the inauguration of a licensing scheme on these lines, and it should receive the close attention of the association leaders. In view of the difficulty of persuading members to support voluntary systems of representation for applicants in the traffic courts, it might be advisable to include the cost of the service in the annual subscriptions. A moderate sum from each of 18,000 20,000 members should enable the scheme to be operated satisfactorily.
A resident full-time solicitor should be appointed in each traffic area, under the control of a lawyer at head office. In this way, continuity of policy in connection with applications would be ensured and valuable information and experience collated.
Such an arrangement would place roadtransport operators on an equal footing with the railways, which have, at present, an unrivalled system of making applications and objections. At the same time, it would relieve local secretaries of associations of work in preparing applications and would enable them to devote their energies to other classes of personal service to members.