§ 58. Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Minister of Transport whether he will seek further information from the Greater London Council to show how the £250,000 fines imposed on motorists evading the payment of road fund licences was made up; whether he will give examples of the heavier type of fines and penalties imposed; and how many so fined have been guilty of this offence on more than one occasion.
§ Mr. MarshI am informed that the sum of £250,000 is made up of £76,000 from fines, £14,000 from costs, £59,000 arrears of duty—all imposed by the courts—and £101,000 from penalties imposed by the Greater London Council.
Recent heavy penalties imposed by courts in the Greater London area ranged between £130 and £680, made up of a statutory fine, an order for payment of back duty and costs. Information is not readily available about the incidence of offences committed by any particular individual.
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§ 59. Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Minister of Transport whether he will obtain from the other licensing authorities details of reported offences against vehicle excise law similar to those made available by the Greater London Council; and whether he will publish them in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Mr. MarshReturns from the other local authorities do not show precisely the same details as those from the Greater London Council. In the calendar year 1967, which is the last complete period for which their returns are available, the 182 other authorities dealt with 14,389 cases by caution, 63,961 by mitigated penalties and 99,536 by prosecutions. As regards the latter, the penalties imposed by the courts amounted to £614,678, including £47,608 in respect of back duty where offences were committed on or after 21st July 1967.