Haulage jobs to be lost

European truck drivers are set to swarm on to Britain’s roads because of new competition laws passed in Brussels.

Foreign lorries are currently banned from acquiring fresh business in the UK once they have delivered their loads here, except in exceptional circumstances.

But a new regulation, passed by the EU Parliament last month, will let European hauliers take on three more British jobs before returning home within a week.

This will rise to seven jobs by 2010, and by 2014 the new law will allow them unlimited access to UK markets – both in the number of jobs and the time it takes to do them.

As overseas hauliers use cheaper fuel and unregulated labour, particularly from Eastern Europe, British operators claim they will be unable to compete.

Experts believe that the move will cost the British economy an estimated £165million and cause hundreds of small hauliers to close.

This is just brilliant news for hauliers. Competition is a good thing but is this fair competition when the foreign companies already have the advantage with cheaper fuel and labour?

This time the government won’t be able to say they are only taking the jobs that Brits won’t do because Brits are doing those jobs now. The only reason any government would allow this would be so that they can deliberately destroy the British haulage industry. What other reason could there be?