NEW TRANSPORT LICENCES

Southland Times, Issue 25547, 15 December 1944, Page 6

NEW TRANSPORT LICENCES

Returned Men To Be Considered “I cannot grant new transport licences or additional authorities for existing licences until the rehabilitation authorities have had a chance of investigating the applications to see if they offer an opportunity for the rehabilitation of returned men,” said Mr S. V. Raines, No. 4 Transport Licensing Authority, at a sitting in Invercargill yesterday.

Mr Raines added that the fact that such an application was made was prima facie evidence that an opening for a returned man existed. If the evidence showed that there was such an opening, and if the rehabilitation authorities were prepared to finance a returned man to enable him to engage in the business, then his decision would almost certainly be in favour of the returned man.

Mr Raines adjourned a number of applications for new licences and for additional authorities and advised the applicants to present their cases to the rehabilitation authorities. APPLICATION BY TRUST

One of the applications for a new licence was by the Invercargill Licensing Trust. The trust applied for a goods service licence to enable it to cart its own goods. Objections to the granting of the licence were lodged by the District Rehabilitation Officer, Mr S. O. Merlo, and by Mr G. E. T. Dorman, on behalf of the Master Carriers’ Association, on the ground that the work could be done by a returned man. The secretary of the trust, Mr E. Barnett, said that the trust was not trying to start a new business, but was only trying to run its own business and it strongly objected to the Rehabilitation Department and the Carriers’ Association interfering. The trust was paying £3O a week for cartage and it considered that it could almost halve that by doing the cartage itself. Quite a number of other firms in the. town did their own cartage and he did not see why the trust could not do the same. The trust often wanted carting done at inconvenient times and it might not be possible to get the work done when it was wanted if the trust had to depend on an outside man. The trust proposed to engage a returned man as its carter. Considerable difficulty had been experienced in getting a returned man sufficiently strong for the job. Mr Raines: You would not need a Samson. Mr Barnett: Hardly, but handling beer is heavy work. SEMI-PUBLIC BODY

Mr Barnett added that it was just a moot point whether the trust, which was a semi-public body, had to apply to the authority for a licence. If the licence was not granted the trust would be placed in a serious position. The trust had not expected opposition from the Rehabilitation Department considering the large number of returned men that the trust had employed. Mr Merlo: If you employ a driver you can sack him next week, but if a man is set up in a business of his own he is properly rehabilitated. Mr Barnett: We are not opening up a carrying business. Mr Dorman: You want preferential treatment. Mr Barnett: No, we want to carry on our business in our own way. Other applications for new licences or for additional authorities, which were adjourned, were made by the following: Cruickshank and Ward Ltd., Wright, Stephenson and Co., Ltd.; L. J. Blomfield and C. H. Sharp; W. Dawson, Riverton; S. W. McNaughton, Wrights Bush (seasonal); Dipton Transport Co., Ltd.; G. M. Hobbs, Kapuka; John King Ltd., Tuatapere; C. R. McCreath; and D. T. King and Co., Ltd., Pukemaori.