§ Mr. LlwydTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy to seek to amend the Transport Act 1968 to allow licensing authorities to accept a wide range of representations on behalf of a community's residents regarding any plans by road hauliers for new or expanded operations within that community.
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§ Mr. Kenneth CarlisleCounty and district councils, which are locally elected representative bodies, have a statutory right of objection to a licensing authority in respect of applications for, or major variations to, goods vehicle operator licences. In addition, owners or occupiers of property in the vicinity of an operating centre involved in such an application have a right of representation to the licensing authority on the grounds of adverse environmental effect on their property.
Reviews of the goods vehicle operator licensing provisions in 1986 and 1989 concluded that, in addition, parish/community councils should have a right of representation, on general environmental grounds, but that the provisions otherwise strike a fair balance between the interests of people affected by operating centres and those of the road haulage industry. I am satisfied that this remains the case.