§ 1. Forms of transport other than road should be used whenever possible. The over-riding consideration governing the issue of supplementary rations will therefore be whether the traffic must be moved by road and cannot be handled by other means.
§ 2. Subject to paragraph I special consideration will be given to
- (a) traffics and activities listed in the Annex below; including long-distance traffics in the Annex for which it is essential that road transport should be used;
- (b) feeder services to and from the railways or the ports;
- (c) traffics which require the use of specially constructed vehicles and which cannot be transferred to other forms of transport.
§ 3. In so far as supplies allow and subject to paragraph I above, the needs of traffics which are not included in the Annex but which must be moved by road if important industries and services are to be carried on, will be met by supplementary issues, first to A- and B-licensed vehicles and secondly to C-licensed vehicles. Save in exceptional circumstances supplementary rations for traffics not included in the Annex will not be issued for
- (a) long-distance work unless it is clear that no other means of transport can be used;
- (b) C-licensed vehicles of one ton or less unladen weight.
§ Annex
§ Bulk movement of essential foods.
§ Retail delivery of:
- (a) milk
- (b) other basic foods in rural areas or areas far from shops.
§ Seeds and raw materials necessary for food production or food processing.
§ Essential medical supplies.
§ Essential materials for the steel industry.
§ Essential activities related to coal production.
§ Delivery of house coal.
§ Newsprint and newspapers.
§ (Note: This list is not necessarily exhaustive and its application may be varied according to the circumstances and needs of different districts.)
§ 35. Mr. Collinsasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation what, after need has been proved, will be the maximum supplementary petrol allocation for goods vehicles, with C licences, expressed as a percentage of the basic petrol ration for such vehicles.
§ Mr. WatkinsonSupplementary rations for individual vehicles will not be related to the basic ration for those vehicles, but to the nature of the work which the vehicle performs.
§ Mr. CollinsIs the Minister aware that the present basic ration for goods vehicles is only some 25 per cent. of the normal consumption? Will he, in his instructions to his officers, ensure that the allocation to important industries is sufficient to ensure that they are, with economy, fully maintained and that full employment is maintained?
§ Mr. WatkinsonI have just explained—I want to make it plain, and I am 1222 grateful to the hon. Gentleman for asking the question—that the duty of the officers is to save 25 per cent. of the total consumption. Having done that, they will then judge, not on the basic ration, but on the need in respect of the goods which are to be moved, and they will also take account of alternative methods of transport by canal or rail. Subject to those things, they will be, as I said, as generous as they possibly can be.