HC Deb 22 November 1983 vol 49 cc92-3W
Mr. Proctor

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the number of traffic wardens employed in the Metropolitan police district; what is the cost of the traffic warden service to public funds; what revenue is collected from fines for traffic offences; and if he will give comparative figures for each of the past five years.

Mr. Hurd

[pursuant to his reply, 3 November 1983; c. 431]: The available information is as follows:

Traffic Wardens employed in the Metropolitan Police District
Date Strength (excluding Heathrow) Strength (Heathrow only)*
31 December 1978 1,284 58
31 December 1979 1,047 52
31 December 1980 1,075 60
31 December 1981 1,224 82
31 December 1982 1,385 89
30 September 1983 1,680 89
* The authorised ceiling of 1,800 does not include traffic wardens serving at the Heathrow airport unit, for whom the Metropolitan police receives full reimbursement from the British Airports Authority.

Cost to Public Funds of the Metropolitan Police Traffic Warden Service
Financial Year Cost to Public Funds*
£
1978–1979 5,377,691
1979–1980 5,950,468
1980–1981 6,967,130
1981–1982 8,867,176
1982–1983 10,194,428
* Includes pay, allowances, clothing, training and advertising only.
The cost of transport, accommodation and administration anr not maintained separately for the traffic warden service.

Information is not held centrally about revenue from fines imposed by courts in the Metropolitan police district for traffic offences, as distinct from other offences, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the sums collected by the fixed penalty office, in respect of fixed penalties imposed by the Metropolitan police—which do not constitute fines—are as follows:

Sums collected by the fixed penalty office in relation to fixed penalties imposed by the Metropolitan police
Calendar Year Sums Collected
£
1978 5,060,000
1979 5,019,000

Calendar Year Sums Collected
£
1980 *7,211,000
1981 7,216,000
1982 13,052,000
* This figure contains sums from the previous year which were held over because of industrial action.
The level of fixed penalties was increased from £6 to £10 in March 1982.

Co-responsibility Levy Payments
MECU
1977* 1978* 1979 1980 1981 1982
Belgium 0.9 6.5 3.6 8.0 16.9 17.8
Denmark 1.4 10.6 5.4 11.5 25.6 28.5
Germany 8.4 46.6 25.5 58.2 118.7 132.6
France 4.9 34.4 20.6 53.4 114.9 123.6
Ireland 0.6 7.1 4.7 12.2 23.5 25.7
Italy 5.5 8.2 11.5 25.0 31.0
Luxembourg -0.6 0.3 0.6 1.2 1.3
Netherlands 4.6 21.6 12.3 29.2 64.3 75.8
United Kingdom 2.1 22.9 13.7 38.3 88.3 101.1
* For 1977 and 1978 official Commission figures for the breakdown by Member States are available only in units of account (UAS). The figures given above for these years in ECUS are a MAFF assesment.

Source: E.C. Commission FEOGA Financial Reports.

Table II
Co-responsibility Payments in England and Wales and Scotland
England and Wales £m Scotland £m
1977 2.2 0.2
1978 12.8 1.3
1979 7.5 0.7
1980 19.3 1.8
1981 41.2 4.0
1982 47.1 4.7

Expenditure of Co-responsibility levy among Various Schemes
mECU
Measure 1977* 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 16 September 1977 to 31 December 1982
Total expenditure
(a) School milk (Reg 1080/77) 10.3 30.0 45.7 41.4 491 176.5
(b) Butter for the manufacture of icecream (Reg 262/79) 7.5 28.2 25.9 24.0 24.4 22.6 132.6
(c) Concentrated butter for dir. consumption (Reg 649/78) 4.7 1.5 5.1 7.3 5.7 24.3
(d) Promotion advertising and market research in the Community (Reg 723/78) 10.1 37.4 26.7 35.2 25.6 173.7
(e) Market research outside the Community (Reg. 1993/78)
(f) Improvement of the quality of milk (Reg 1271/78 and 723/78) 15.5 7.9 8.8 6.5