HL Deb 08 April 1981 vol 419 cc523-5
Lord Allen of Abbeydale

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what they are doing to prevent imported cars from going about our roads with "mini" British number plates falling well below the prescribed standards.

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, over recent years most manufacturers of imported cars have taken steps to provide mounting spaces large enough for a British number plate. While this has significantly reduced our difficulties with sub-standard plates, there are still some vehicles, mostly American cars, which cannot accommodate a full-size number plate. The practice of fitting the so-called "mini" number plates is a potential road safety problem which we are considering along with other problems relating to number plates.

Lord Allen of Abbeydale

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for that reply. I wonder whether he can explain why it is that the police, who tell us they would have no difficulty in enforcing a compulsory seat belts law, do nothing about this offence when the evidence is quite literally staring them in the face?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, the noble Lord is quite right; the enforcement of the regulation is in the hands of the police. But the use of police resources is of course a matter for individual chief officers. However, in any case individual prosecutions do not get to the root of the problem. The real need is to ensure that a legal plate can be fitted, and is fitted, to a vehicle when it is new.

Lord Allen of Abbeydale

My Lords, I wonder whether I might press this a little further. Is there not some risk of underrating the importance of this matter? Would it not be a serious matter if someone were unfortunately knocked down by one of these vehicles and then could not read the number plate because it was illegally too small? Are there not good reasons why number plates should be visible at a distance, and is there not good reason why the law should not be so openly flouted?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, I have already recognised that there is a problem here. I would not say that the law is openly flouted, but there are some occasions, for particular reasons, when the law is not obeyed. The use of number plates which are more difficult to read than those prescribed in the regulations must add to the problems of the police and other enforcement officers. It could, as the noble Lord suggests, also lead to difficulties in identifying cars after accidents and thereby prove a road safety hazard, but I am not as yet aware of any evidence of serious difficulties which have been caused in this area. Should any evidence be presented, then of course the department will have no hesitation in consulting the relevant organisations and very promptly doing something about it.

Lord Boyd-Carpenter

My Lords, can my noble friend confirm that use of these mini plates is in fact a criminal offence?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, yes, it is. The present standards are laid down by regulation, which of course was approved by both Houses of Parliament.

The Earl of Selkirk

My Lords, is it not one of the tests of eyesight that one can see number plates at a certain distance?

Lord Skelmersdale

Yes, my Lords; but the problem is that these mini number plates contain letters which are some 10 per cent. smaller than the normal ones that we are accustomed to on cars.

Viscount Simon

My Lords, does the noble Lord agree that our manufacturers are not able to sell motor-cars abroad if they do not satisfy the rules of the countries in which we are selling them? Why should it be possible for motor-cars manufactured abroad to come here when they do not comply with our rules?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, we have of course approached the representatives of the manufacturers about the difficulties. Our reason for going to them first is that the provision of an adequate mounting space on a car is in our view the best way of tackling the problem. This approach has already worked well with several manufacturers of imported cars. The residual problem is not large, but if any of the import concessionaires or dealers in vehicles which have this difficulty are concerned about the problem and wish to discuss it, the officials of my department would be happy to arrange a meeting. Further to this, the residual problem appears to be that privately imported cars—for example, for servicemen who are serving here and belong to other nationalities—are subsequently sold into the trade in this country. At the time when they owned them they were legal.

Lord Beaumont of Whitley

My Lords, would the noble Lord like to explain what is the difference between openly flouting the law, which he said did not happen, and breaking it in broad daylight?

Lord Skelmersdale

My Lords, I think this is a question of semantics which I am not qualified to answer on this occasion, but I shall consider and write to the noble Lord, if I may.

Viscount St. Davids

My Lords, I wonder whether the noble Lord would consider whether it might be worth while advising the owners of cars with these number plates that they are likely to be stopped at any moment and randomly breathalysed perfectly legally because they are at all times committing an offence?

Lord Skelmersdale

Yes, my Lords, but this would add to the pressing problems of bureaucracy which we have at the moment.

Back to