Spotlight on policy team

Since the summer, I've been the Manager of the Member Advice Centre (MAC) but I’ve been working at Logistics UK MAC for five years. Over the past five years, my role has involved handling member enquiries on the phones and responding to emails, which has been great to understand the types of common questions we handle.  

In my new role, whilst I have stepped away from phones, I now oversee the team of expert advisers who are responding to enquiries and keeping members up to date on the latest legislative changes. Within the team everyone has their own specialist topic, such as dangerous goods, international enquiries, decarbonisation, driver licencing and driver CPC, meaning between us, there is a huge amount of expertise. 

The MAC handles thousands of member queries each year and is a service available for all members seeking information on logistics regulation and compliance. Each day we receive enquiries on all sorts of topics from drivers’ hours, operator licencing and tachographs to specialist subjects such as questions on transferring goods across international borders. 

 We understand how important it is for members to be kept informed of all the latest compliance changes and it’s our job to offer the best advice we can. We find operators are often looking for reassurance or verification on information in order to report back internally, so we’re happy to help provide this information and a second opinion.  

As well as handling member enquiries over the phone and email, we produce a range of information products to help keep members up to date on the latest legislation changes including via; briefing notes or fact sheets, the Logistics Magazine, as well as articles and webinars.   

We host a number of complimentary Member Briefings online each year, which have proved to be really popular and cover a number of compliance topics. Our next on is taking place in February and will look at the revised dangerous goods regulations as well as covering frequently asked questions received within the MAC – highlighting current issues, providing insight and interpretation and helping members remain complaint.  

In addition to the online webinars, we hold in-person Member Briefings during the May round of Policy Councils, where we travel across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, sharing the latest information on key legislative changes and issues affecting the industry.  

Within the MAC team, two of us are also Secretary for two Working Groups; the Utilities Services Working Group and Waste Forum Working Group. Engagement with these groups is a great way to see members face-to-face and we meet twice a year to discuss the latest policy issues on these subjects. We also invite external speakers along and use the meetings to help shape Logistics UK’s policy positions on the topics, which are then used to influence and bring about policy change – I encourage any member interested in these to come along.  

Over the past couple of years, the MAC has also started to present at Logistics UK’s Transport Manager events, where we deliver presentations and help to increase our visibility. As part of the wider Policy team, we also work on a number of reports and publications each year.  

Most recently, we have just finished the Yearbook of Road Transport Law and are currently reviewing the European Road Freight Guide. With everything we work on, whether it’s fact sheet, briefing notes, compliance guides, we review these regularly to make sure the information is accurate and up to date. For example, we have recently published ones on ADR changes or the load security guidance in response to the increased number of calls we are getting on these topics.   

I encourage all members to reach out to the MAC with any questions. Access to the MAC is free for all members and we are always happy to help. If we don’t have the answer immediately, we have established good relationships with Traffic Commissioners, DVSA, DVLA and other teams who can advise if needed. Sometimes it may take a little longer to respond if we need to dig into some legislation, but we always strive to get the correct and most up to date information to members.  

Published On: 30/01/2025 14:50:15

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