A LOCAL man is lobbying the Government for a change in the laws surrounding European lorry drivers entering the UK – claiming unless action is taken the British haulage industry could "collapse".

Grimsby HGV driver Alan Overton, 44, said that some UK firms were missing out on contracts, as foreign drivers do not have to pay to drive in Britain, and as a result can often undercut local businesses.

He said the situation was compounded by the fact that British drivers have to pay to drive on the continent – forcing up prices and making it increasingly hard for UK firms to compete.

He has already been given the backing of local politicians and today we are calling on you to let us know your thoughts on the issue.

Mr Overton has proposed a system that he says could generate the Government around £525,000 per week and support UK firms.

He said: "My system is a simple one – we charge £15 per day for a European lorry to transit the country."

He claims that without introducing some form of transit tax, British motorists will end up footing the bill for roads damaged by the increased traffic.

He said: "By paying road tax, British motorists are subsidising European haulage companies to use our roads.

"The Europeans do not have to pay road tax to use our roads and the volume from traffic from the Europe on our roads is unbelievable.

"Our companies just cannot compete with them because the Europeans can afford to do it cheaper – they do not have to pay what our companies do.

"This is Europe's food town – if we lose the haulage industry the impact on Grimsby would be huge.

"The EU companies would take on the work from the collapsed UK companies and we would be bombarded by European trucks causing wear and tear to our roads and not paying for it.

"Members of the public would have to foot the bill in terms of paying higher road tax."

Source: Grimsby Telegraph