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The government's decision not to reward any of the Euro 5 trucks on the UK's roads with a VED rebate worth up to £500 has sparked anger in the industry. In the Budget the chancellor announced that he was re-instating the Reduced Pollution Certificate (RPC) for Euro 5 trucks, but only for those with NOx emissions sensors. Since this technology will not be available until October, and cannot be retrofitted, the estimated 5,000 Euro 5 trucks already on the road will not qualify. The SMMT has already  met with the DfT to express its concerns on this matter, but has so far not heard anything.

"I am particularly angered by the apparent lack of resp-onse since the issue was first raised," says Ashley Bassett, joint MD of Tittensor, Staffs-based RG Bassett & Sons, which is running a pair of Euro 5 Daf XF105 tractors. "We are being penalised for taking the initiative and doing what the government wants us to do. "Banging a tin can in the wilderness doesn't get heard by anyone, and that's got a lot of parallels with this situation." These sentiments are echoed by Clive Hodgkinson, MD of haulier C Butt, which has so far invested £1m in Euro 5 trucks. He expresses his anger to MT that the VED rebate is not being offered to all Euro 5 trucks, no matter whether they have the latest on-board diagnostics or not. He is currently lobbying his local MPs over the issue.

Daf's marketing director Tony Pain, says: "These are the hauliers who made the decision to be cleaner and  greener from the outset, so deserve the rebate more than any-one else. "And there is no foundation to the argument that hauliers who buy early Euro 5 trucks plan to run them without AdBlue. If they were thinking of cheating then why would they buy Euro 5 to begin with?" Ray Cattley, Volvo Trucks legislation and environmental manager, is urging operators to contact the minister of state for transport, Dr Stephen Ladyman. He says: "The government wants people to buy the cleanest vehicles, and when they do they get treated like this. It just encourages them to hang back next time."