§ 7. Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will now fix a date to pay an official visit to a vehicle testing station.
§ Dr. GilbertI refer my hon. and learned Friend to the answer I gave him on Tuesday 27th January.—[Vol. 904, c. 149–50.]
§ Mr. JannerIs my hon. Friend aware that when he visits a testing station he will inevitably find vehicles that fail the test because their brakes or steering are dangerous being driven straight back on to the roads? Are not the drivers of those vehicles in breach of the law? What does he propose to do to prevent vehicles known by the testing stations to be dangerous from going back on the roads, where they are a potential menace?
§ Dr. GilbertNot all vehicles that fail the MoT test would be in breach of the minimum legal requirements. However, I have considerable sympathy with what my hon. and learned Friend is seeking to achieve. He will be aware that there are considerable difficulties about giving MoT testers the powers that he contemplates.
§ Mr. FryIs the hon. Gentleman aware that the findings of the Consumers' Association and roadside spot checks by the police show that a high percentage of new vehicles have wrongly adjusted headlamps? Will he therefore re-examine the requirements for testing lights before reintroducing the headlamps regulations which he had to withdraw just before Christmas?
§ Dr. GilbertIf the hon. Gentleman had been paying attention during our debate on the order relating to headlamps he would have noticed that I made proposals for tightening up the MoT test in precisely that respect.