NOW that the dust has settled on the prospect of fuel shortages resulting from protest demonstrations, it might be assumed that fuel prices are no longer an issue.

Nothing could be further from the truth and the haulage industry continues to campaign for changes to the Government's approach to fuel duty on diesel.

Our reason for this campaign is simple: the UK has the highest level of fuel duty in Europe and, as a result, increasing numbers of foreign registered vehicles are competing unfairly for road-haulage work in this country at the expense of British jobs. Since the fuel protest of 2000 the number of foreign vehicles entering this country has increased by nearly 50 per cent and this is having a dramatic impact.

We realise that there are other issues, such as the fact that many Eastern European drivers receive much lower wages than their UK equivalents, but to encourage cut-price competition from foreign companies by charging such high levels of duty is unfair. Successive British governments have overseen the decline of many British industries including coal mining, fishing and agriculture.

We hope and believe that the Government will not see the UK's haulage industry, regarded as a global model of best practice, decline in the same way.

Geoff Dunning,

Regional Director,

The Road Haulage Association ,

Northern Region,

Little Wood Drive, Cleckheaton.

Updated: 10:36 Monday, October 10, 2005