§ Mr. Benjamin Smithasked the Minister of Transport (1) whether he is aware that during the hearing of a case against the Gibson Road Transport Company, Limited, Clayton Street, Newport, Monmouthshire, for tampering with a driver's log, the defence attempted to discredit the 2922W driver by suggesting that he had been dismissed for the alleged theft of oil and for being involved in accidents and that his evidence was a deliberate attempt to get his former employers into trouble; whether he is aware that this line of defence is frequently pursued; whether the examiners for the Traffic Commissioners have experienced any difficulty in obtaining evidence because of the intimidation of drivers in this and other ways; and whether he will therefore consider increasing the number of examiners;
(2) Whether he is aware of the case in which the Gibson Road Transport Company, Limited, Clayton Street, Newport, Monmouthshire, were fined £15, and £2 2s. costs, after having tampered with a driver's log, so as to make it appear that he had had the rest prescribed by law; that the driver gave evidence that nine out of ten logs are altered in this company's office, and that the Baillie Committee regarded such falsification as a very serious offence; whether cases of this kind are on the increase; and whether he is satisfied that the scale of penalties under the present law is commensurate with the serious nature of the offence, as suggested by the Baillie Committee;
(3) Whether his attention has been drawn to the evidence given by a lorry driver during the hearing of a case against the Gibson Road Transport Company, Limited, Clayton Street, Newport, Monmouthshire, to the effect that drivers are expected to make six trips a week from Newport to Brentford with lorries limited to a speed of 20 miles per hour, which could not be done with lorries allowed to travel at 30 miles per hour; and whether the schedules for such journeys are examined with a view to preventing speeding and allowing drivers to secure the rest prescribed by the Road Traffic Act in the interests of public safety?
§ Mr. BurginI have caused inquiries to be made into this case and I am informed that the defence to the action was on the lines indicated by the hon. Member, and that the Court found the case proved and inflicted the penalty which he describes. Licensing Authorities in their annual reports have expressed the view that falsification of driving records is prevalent and that drivers are reluctant to give evidence about their records for fear of dismissal. I fully share the hon. Member's desire to stamp out this practice and I 2923W have recently taken steps to augment the number of examiners whose duty it is to scrutinise the records with a view to seeing if the law as to speeding and hours of driving and rest are complied with. I am satisfied that the maximum penalty of revocation or suspension of a licence is adequate.