HC Deb 15 June 1964 vol 696 cc932-3
33. Mr. E. Johnson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what arrangements exist for him to be informed of cases where traffic or parking regulations have been broken by drivers of cars with diplomatic immunity so that he can inform the ambassador concerned.

Mr. Mathew

Arrangements have recently been made for my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary to provide the Foreign Office with regular weekly lists of fixed penalty violations of parking regulations involving persons entitled to diplomatic immunity. These lists are compiled by the Metropolitan Police. More serious traffic offences are individually reported to the Foreign Office by the Home Office.

Mr. Johnson

Is my hon. Friend aware of the great need for these arrangements, because infringements of the parking laws by cars which have diplomatic immunity or which carry a disc are extremely frequent? Is he aware that only this morning, a traffic warden showed me four such cars which were illegally parked in a very short length of street and said that they were there every day, that the occupant of one car stayed to lunch and that there was nothing that the warden could do about it? Is it not absolutely wrong that our motorists should be penalised by these people? If they cannot keep our laws, cannot they be asked to leave the country?

Mr. Mathew

It is for the reasons given by my hon. Friend that new arrangements have recently been instituted to report fixed penalty offences to the ambassadors concerned with a request that the regulations should in future be observed. The more serious offences have always been reported to the ambassadors individually. We must wait and see how the new arrangements work. I may say that the Diplomatic Corps has, in general, shown a considerable willingness to co-operate.

Mr. Rankin

Was the person who killed a cyclist outside the precincts of this House last Monday evening travelling under diplomatic immunity? Is that the reason why nothing has been heard of the accident and so far nothing done in regard to the person who caused the death?

Mr. Mathew

I have no information about that individual case, but if the hon. Member cares to put down a Question I will do my best to answer it.

Mr. Rankin

Questions are already down.