LONDON, May 30 /PRNewswire/ -- After this week's fuel price protest in London, the Road Haulage Association is pressing ahead with arrangements for a mass rally and lobby of Parliament in early July after getting the full support of the RHA Board of Directors.

This will be timed to coincide with the SNP amendment to the current Finance Bill seeking the introduction of a Fuel Duty Regulator designed to stabilise fuel prices.

"Earlier this week protesters certainly captured the media's attention for what is an absolutely just cause, but handing yet another letter to No. 10 does not move us any further forward," said RHA Chief Executive Roger King. "To have an impact, we need to get directly involved with a parliamentary process that will confront Government face to face so that they have to answer publicly as to what they propose to do. Fortunately this amendment promises to do just that."

The RHA will be putting in motion what is intended to be one of the biggest parliamentary lobby's of recent times. "Once we have the date on which the Scottish National Party amendment is to be debated we will advise members accordingly and urge them to attend to lobby their MP's. In addition to the amendment we will also be campaigning for the October 2ppl fuel duty increase to be abandoned." concluded Mr King.

Notes for Editors

- The Fuel Duty Regulator would result in an automatic freeze on fuel duty increase if world oil prices rose above levels forecast by the Chancellor and a parallel reduction in fuel duty to match the extra revenue from VAT from higher pump prices.

- The RHA initially proposed the introduction of an Essential User Rebate in 1999 and has campaigned consistently for this ever since. However the priority now is to stabilise fuel prices thus enabling the haulage industry's rates to catch up with costs. In the long term an Essential User Rebate has to be the way forward if restrictions to the UK market for foreign trucks is removed in 2012.

The Road Haulage Association - more than you think

For more details, contact RHA Head of Communications Kate Gibbs on: Tel: +44(0)1932-838917, Mob: +44(0)7979-531451