§ Mr. Eldon Griffithsasked the Secretary of State for the Environment by what statutory authority officials of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Centre have selected from his Department's registration records the names and addresses of individual constituents of the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds for the purpose of requesting them to complete 11-page questionnaires about the condition, price, mileage and ownership of the cars they drive; why he is permitting information gathered from the public for one reason, namely vehicle registration, to be used for another, namely soliciting consumer reaction on behalf of another Government agency; who is paying for this undertaking; and what is the estimated cost so far to public funds.
§ Mr. MarksThe Driver and Vehicle Licensing Centre is itself mailing questionnaires to selected new car owners on behalf of the National Consumer Council thus protecting the confidentiality of the information on the vehicle register. No stautory authority is required for this. Participation in the survey is completely voluntary, but the results should be of considerable interest both to industry and to the consumer. The National Consumer Council is reimbursing the costs incurred by the centre on this exercise.