Freighters call for budget taxation freeze

Date: 20th March 2009

British freighters have called on the government to abandon proposed increases in fuel duties and taxation.

Through the Freight Transport Association (FTA), logistics employees in the UK have claimed that any rise in duties could put jobs and businesses at serious risk.

According to calculations made by the association, the proposed 1.84p per litre hike could cost firms as much as £1,500 per vehicle.

Chief of the FTA, Theo de Pencier, commented: "A couple of pence here and there may not seem like much, but when you're already working to the tightest of margins, every penny counts.

"These planned increases really kick the sector when it's down."

The UK's freight industry currently employs a workforce of 2.3 million, the FTA stated.

Meanwhile, the British Chambers of Commerce has warned the European Union not to remove the UK's opt-out of the Working Time Directive, claiming it will impede the country's business recovery.