IoC news
Industry news of relevance to Fellows and Members
Police drop DX investigation as CEO Petar Cvetkovic steps down and re-structure takes place.
The City of London Police have dropped their investigation into DX last week but this week DX Group reported that the net debt at the end of what the company described as an ‘exceptionally challenging year’ is expected to be £19 million, revenues are expected to be just short of 300 million for the year to June 2017. CEO Petar Cvetkovic, and finance director Daljit Basi announcement went public that they would step down from board, taking place with immediate effect. DX reported James Hayward, FCA, to become interim CFO.
National audience with TfL to TfGM Manchester,
Highways England talk national specs to include FORS.
Fleet operator recognition scheme was hosted at the Tarmac HQ in Birmingham with a Friday fish and chip lunch to finish a productive morning. IOC chair Carl Lomas was at the table to talk vans and light vehicles. It’s like a kite mark, there are no furry dice and it’s not a membership. Born in TfL, the national players such as Highways England ask you to have FORS before tendering for transport delivery.
- FORS create light vehicle van working group
- Webinars to explain FORS begin August 7th
- 17% increase in gold members
- What are the benefits of FORS beyond tendering, a positive discussion continues.
A growing number of IoC fellows have the FORS recognition for light vehicle fleets. FORS practitioner qualification is also embedded into the Apprenticeship Trailblazer degree apprenticeship.
Govt taskforce meeting the demand for skilled people in transport.
Apprenticeships in Transport taskforce at 55 Broadway with the Minister, Mike Brown & john Holland-Kaye with govt dept heads.
The Strategic Transport Apprenticeship Taskforce (STAT) The report title: Transport Infrastructure Skills Strategy met in the July sunshine of Wed 12th july. A one year on showcase of the progress so far that is truly multi-modal - road, rail and air.
Who's Who turn out to face the challenge of what is employment status in the express sector of courier. The Government's Taylor Review has looked at the evolving gig economy, conventional PAYE, self-employed and then worker as a status in the grey area inbetween. Where does Express fit ?
STOP PRESS: 11:15am Tuesday 11 July 2017 - Taylor Review Published
Read the Taylor Review Final Report
Express sector's Taylor Review submission is ready for you to read. Click below to view what the sector says about worker status in Express
Read the Taylor Review Submission
Carl Lomas IoC Chair,
Our sector has mixed platforms of employment, operators often have PAYE and self-employed drivers, and some drivers work for more than one company; some drivers may even work in different status for different company. May 2nd Heads of Industry is about the views of the operators. From a recent IoC survey, the round-table and one-to-one interviews, the IoC will submit a response to the Taylor Review.
Professor Tracey Worth leads the round-table questions for the IoC
- What characteristics do you most value in your final mile drivers ?
- What do you think are the main reasons why your couriers choose their employment status ?
- How do you deal with none profitable routes in low density geographics, out of hours ? Lifestyle ?
- Why have you chosen mixed employment status for your fleet ?
- How do you deal with an unprofitable job in the wrong direction ?
- Is there favouritism in allocation of jobs in your driver fleet ?
- 84% of operators surveyed agree there should be a code of conduct: what employment characteristics would you want to see in that code of conduct ?
Read more about the Taylor Review
IoC Courier bike gets 500 year Carmen signs in Transaid line-up at National Motorcycle Museum.
Gary Forester, CEO of Transaid and Mike Daly welcomed Carl Lomas and the IoC working courier bike to the National motorbike Transaid run at the Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham. Carl Lomas had the Carmen oak board ready to show the Lord Mayor's approval for the bike to ply trade in the City of London. ‘This is a proper working bike!’ commented Lomas.
Rob Flello, former Labour MP for Stoke on Trent South and ex-head of all-party freight group comments.
Now that the dust has settled on the General Election - even if the repercussions are still being felt throughout Westminster and beyond - I wanted to write to thank all of the attendees of the Group for your valuable input to our meetings over the years. Your support and friendship have been very much appreciated; Thank You. I also wanted to say a special thank you to Jon Beech for his technical input over a very long time and to the trade associations for providing the invaluable administrative support to the Group.
As you know, I didn’t retain my Parliamentary seat in Stoke-on-Trent South and so I am unable to take the Freight Group forward in Parliament. At this stage I don’t know whether a willing volunteer will come forward to carry on the Group’s work but I do hope the real progress with raising the profile of logistics within Westminster can continue. Watch this space!
For my part I am now concentrating on a new career doing consultancy and advocacy work bringing to bear my knowledge of the freight sector, the operation of government and the Houses of Parliament more generally, as well as business know-how from my life before Westminster. I very much hope our paths will cross before too long and please always feel free to get in touch. My new email address is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London launched his draft transport policy for consultation June 21st
Today the Mayor launches his draft Transport Strategy and he would like to hear your views on it.
It sets out his vision and ambitious plan to reshape transport in London over the next 25 years to create a better city for all Londoners.
For London to function well and be a great place to live, work and visit, the way people move around will need to change. The draft new Transport Strategy sets out a comprehensive and bold new approach to change the way people choose to travel in the capital. Through investment in healthy streets, public transport and measures to reduce the reliance on cars the aim is that by 2041 80 per cent of all trips in London will be made on foot, by cycle or by public transport.
The document can be found here on the IoC web, starting policy number one,
- London faces a number of growing challenges to the sustainability of its transport system. To re-examine the way people move about the city in the context of these challenges, it is important that they have been correctly identified.
The Mayor would like to hear your views on his draft Transport Strategy which details the policies and proposals to deliver on this vision. To fill in the stakeholder consultation questionnaire go to: tfl.gov.uk/mayors-transport-strategy
Alternatively, if you would prefer to respond in greater detail you can send a written submission by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by post to FREEPOST TFL CONSULTATIONS. There are questions at the end of each chapter to provide a guide to key areas for more detailed responses and these are also attached for your information.
The public consultation will be open until 2 October 2017.
Top level TFL briefing: Ultra Low emission zone ULEZ will arrive 17 months early.
It begins April 2019 – Tim Ward TFL, ‘working with you we can improve air quality.’
IOC chairman Carl Lomas was with Tim Ward TFL for the ULEZ briefing. Tim welcomed the freight sector to the TFL 55 Broadway building in SW1, originally the ten floors rising from St James tube station was the tallest tower block in London. Buildings, like emissions, have moved on. It was an energetic and operator-engaged discussion as the ULEZ date races forward.
LoCity TfL Van group hosted on hydrogen for June meeting , clean air final mile deliveries, alternative fuels, a transition policy, electric cargo bikes, Kings College driver air survey.
Chair Carl Lomas, ‘The van group clearly has two streams, operators who return vehicles for fuel or charge to their base and operators whose drivers take vehicles home, they are unlikely to have off-street parking, garage or charging facilities. Infastructure has been voted the biggest challenge, charge points for electric. The group is a little electric-centric but solutions of consolidation, cycle and cargo bike are high on the operators' agenda. Training to save fuel remains high on the agenda for clean air and FORS were at the June meeting to showcase.
Arcola energy hosted the June meeting of LoCity van group, focused on alternative fuel vehicle solutions for London clean air and chaired by Carl Lomas IoC. Guests included CitySprint, Addison Lee, Tesco dot com, Ocado, DLR and the tube van support teams amongst the big London van fleets.
Over two thousand registered attendees for Microlise at Ricoh arena Coventry as news comes in for the Degree, Express Manager and 80% of those attending said they would wait five days for free delivery.
Microlise, the largest transport conference in Europe was standing room only at the Coventry Ricoh arena. Blue carpets stacked full of logisticians.
IoC Chair Carl Lomas spoke for Last Mile express. Exploding numbers of e-retail, a history of final mile, the pineapple from around the world delivered free to your door. A client chain delivery focused on a household food, delivered final mile free of charge.
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