Latest Industry news – Page 178
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Industrial action set to run as DVSA and Prospect reach impasse
Industrial action by Prospect staff working for the DVSA looks set to run and run, after DVSA interim chief executive Paul Satoor said the so-called ‘modernisation of employment contract’ (MEC) at the heart of the matter would not be renegotiated. In a letter to staff on 27 November - the ...
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Benchmark your people power
Market analysts Analytiqa has teamed up with FireDog Research - set up by former SfL chief executive Ross Moloney (pictured) - to launch a benchmarking service enabling logistics operators to find out how their company compares with their peers in a range of HR and customer related KPIs.The new service ...
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Transport Committee to investigate hard-shoulder-running on motorways
The Transport Select Committee has launched an inquiry into the effectiveness of all-lane running on England’s motorways.Several all-lane running motorway schemes in sections of the M1, M4, M5, M6, M42 and M62 are in operation either as part of a managed motorway, or with the hard shoulder used as a ...
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Society of Operations Engineers appoints Ian Chisholm as MD
Ian Chisholm has been appointed as MD of the Society of Operations Engineers (SOE) after 14 years with the society. Chisholm joined SOE in 2001 as an engineering executive, and has been awarded the new role to mark what the society describes as its "next phase in growth".He said that ...
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Pressure mounts for DVSA as second union threatens to escalate strikes
Pressure is mounting on the DVSA management to return to the negotiating table with a second union pledging to escalate strike action across DVSA centres this week.The Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) has announced plans for a rolling programme of regional strikes, following a two day strike last week.The ...
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Tesco DC staff contemplate strike in run-up to Christmas
Around 2,000 drivers and warehouse staff across three Tesco DCs could be taking strike action in the run-up to Christmas, after union Unite began balloting them following what it described as a “pitiful” pay offer by the retailer. Some 700 staff at Tesco’s Belfast and Doncaster DCs will be balloted ...
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Most ATFs 'unaffected' by strike, claims DVSA
Most authorised testing facilities (ATFs) were unaffected by the strike carried out by Prospect vehicle testing and enforcement staff working for the DVSA earlier this month, the government agency has said. In a written statement, a DVSA spokesman told Motortransport.co.uk “over 85%” of ATFs were unaffected by the union’s three-hour ...
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Chancellor's failure to back HGV driver training will hurt the UK economy
The RHA and FTA have expressed their frustration at the government’s failure to back calls for an HGV driver training fund in the Autumn Statement, and criticised the absence of a dedicated driving apprenticeship. RHA chief executive Richard Burnett said that ignoring the trade association’s call for a £150m driver ...
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New device monitors drivers' blood sugar levels in real time
Employers can ensure they comply with medical requirements surrounding diabetes and driving with the launch of a device that monitors blood sugar levels in real time.The GSM-enabled monitoring device also receives information that helps HGV drivers manage their condition and according to hauliers’ organisation The Logistics Guild, could prevent future ...
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Operators face a return to fuel duty increases from 2016
Fuel duty is set to be increased next year and will climb each year after that in line with inflation.Although chancellor George Osborne did not mention fuel duty in his Autumn Statement yesterday (25 November), effectively maintaining the status quo that has meant no duty rises in five years, this ...
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Fuel duty held for now but chancellor ignores calls for a cut
The chancellor has held fuel duty in today’s Autumn Statement meaning no rise for a fifth year running but could have gone further, according to FairFuelUK (FFUK).FFUK, which released new CEBR research ahead of the Autumn Statement and Spending Review, said while no increase was welcome the chancellor “could have ...
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DfT hit hardest by government budget cuts
The DfT was hit with the biggest government departmental cut in the Spending Review today. Released alongside George Osborne's Autumn Statement, the review sets out a 37% cut in the DfT's day-to-day operations budget, which will see it fall from £2.6bn this year to £1.8bn in 2019/20.This is despite an ...
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Motor Transport Podcast: FairFuelUK, Autumn Statement
The latest Motor Transport Podcast is now available to download from iTunes.In this week's edition the Motor Transport news team discuss what operators should expect from the chancellor’s Autumn Statement today. It also includes some highlights from the FairFuelUK-commissioned report, Assessing the Impact of Lower Prices on the UK ...
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Strike action set to escalate at DVSA
Serious disruption of vehicle testing operations at authorised testing facilities (ATFs) is on the cards with DVSA workers planning to escalate their industrial action from this week with a series of one day strikes.The industrial action centres around a long running dispute at DVSA over pay and conditions linked to ...
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FairFuelUK: Lower fuel duty will boost the economy longterm
FairFuelUK (FFUK) has published new research "that blows the current thinking around fuel duty out of the water", according to the head of the campaign.The CEBR report, Assessing the Impact of Lower Prices on the UK Economy, has revealed that the lower petrol and diesel prices of 2015 have raised ...
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Finance director disqualified for fraud
Former Euromix Concrete finance director David Marsh has been disqualified for eight years from any involvement in the promotion, formation or management of a company.It came after he provided the Insolvency Service with a disqualification undertaking, having admitted to fraudulent abuse of an invoice discounting facility. Marsh’s abuse involved him ...
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Vehicle test disruption likely as DVSA staff go on strike
Vehicle testing operations at authorised testing facilities (ATFs) could be disrupted tomorrow (20 November), after union Prospect confirmed many of its 580 members within the DVSA will be out on strike.The three-hour strike, set to begin at 8am, comprises both vehicle testing and roadside enforcement staff.Prospect negotiations officer Helen Stevens ...
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Transport Exchange Group Load Gauge shows SE driving volumes
The monthly update on freight traffic flows around the UK from Transport Exchange Group shows that in October 2015 movements from Scotland to London/SE of England were up 18% compared with October 2014, while flow from London/SE to the Midlands were up 13%. "export" from the SW to the Midlands ...
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Insurance broker expected more anger over 3.5% IPT hike
A leading commercial vehicle insurance broker has expressed surprise that the logistics sector has not reacted more angrily to the 3.5% hike in insurance premium tax (IPT) that came into effect this month. The rise, which was announced in the Budget in July and affects a range of insurance policy ...
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Operators evading tax with incorrect driver payments could face penalties
Operators could face financial penalties if they are discovered to be paying employed drivers incorrectly to evade tax,after the RHA highlighted the practice.Nickie Elenor, employment consultant at law firm Rothera Sharp, told MotorTransport.co.uk that misleading the authorities about the employment status of a driver is an area that is “very ...