§ Mr. Bestasked the Minister of Transport what monitoring procedure exists 783W to check container traffic entering Wales from Ireland as to compliance with weight restrictions imposed in the United Kingdom; and how many prosecutions there have been for infringement of such restrictions within the last 12 months for which figures are available.
§ Mr. FowlerWe have found that prohibition of vehicles which are overloaded—(until the excess has been removed)—is a more effective deterrent than prosecution. The numbers of Republic of Ireland vehicles, including container traffic, checked by the Department's examiners in the North Western and South Wales traffic areas during the784W period 1 January to 30 November 1979 are as follows:
Number of vehicles checked 666 Number found to be overloaded and prohibited 83 A special campaign was also held throughout the week beginning 21 January 1980 at or near all West Coast ports used by vehicles entering Wales from Ireland. Similar action is taken by local authority trading standards officers, but the figures are not readily available. Offences involving foreign lorries in Great Britain are also regularly reported to the Governments concerned for action under national laws.