A WEALTH of top industry speakers has been lined up for this year's 2001 Fleet News Budget Briefing, to be held on March 16 at Sopwell House Hotel, St Albans, Hertfordshire. The event aims to clarify points made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown in Budget speech on Wednesday, March 7, which will herald some of the most important changes to affect the fleet industry in its history, including CO2-based company car tax, which will come into force in 2002.

The briefing, sponsored by Avis Rent-a-Car, Kwik-Fit Fleet and LloydsTSB autolease, will include in-depth analysis of the speech by Philip Harvey, senior tax adviser to the employee issues group at consultants KPMG. Speakers also include Stewart Whyte, director of the Association of Car Fleet Operators and director of independent fleet consultancy Fleet Audits and Nigel Stead, managing director of Lloyds TSB autolease. Tony Grayling, a senior research fellow in the Institute for Public Policy Research, will reveal how fleets can use the Budget as the springboard for developing green and tax efficient fleet policies.

And following the launch of the independent Work Related Road Safety Task Group's discussion document on slashing workplace accidents, there will also be an in-depth presentation from Les Philpott, secretary to the task group. Tickets cost £95 per delegate and bookings can be made by contacting Sandra Evitt at Fleet News on 01733 468123.