London, UK: The RHA has met MP Greg Smith – the new chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on road freight – to discuss how to deal with skyrocketing diesel prices.
Smith expressed concern that some hauliers could go out of business because of fuel costs – a view the RHA has highlighted to the government for some time.
Smith is supportive of the RHA’s call for a 15 pence per litre fuel duty rebate for essential users. He has hosted two APPG sessions on fuel with UK and EU lorry firms and the report from those sessions is due out soon.
The meeting, with RHA executive director Rod McKenzie and head of public affairs Declan Pang, also covered skills shortages and the apprenticeship levy review, along with the market failure in lorry parking due to planning permission.
McKenzie said: “Greg Smith clearly gets the pain our members are feeling and it’s really important now that MPs who belong to his group join our campaign with the Treasury to get a much better fix on fuel prices to help our struggling members.”
