§ Mr. Bruce-Gardyneasked the Secretary of State for Transport what is his latest estimate of the annual cost to public funds of the vehicle licensing centre at Swansea; what is the number of persons currently there employed; and what was the cost of the service operated by local authorities prior to the establishment of the Swansea centre, revalued at 1981 survey prices.
§ Mr. Fowler[pursuant to his reply, 15 May 1981]: In March 1981 there were 4,326 staff at the driver and vehicle licensing centre and 1,783 at its local offices. This is nearly 1,000 fewer than when we came into office, and when we have completed the transfer of most vehicle relicensing to 3,000 post offices, a further 500 savings will be made. The approximate cost of vehicle and driver licensing in 1980/81 was £80 million.
The approximate cost of the previous local authority system in its last full year of operation in 1973, revalued to 1981 survey prices, would be £65.5 million. These figures cannot, however, be directly compared. They do not reflect subsequent increases of 26 per cent. in the number of drivers or 13 per cent. in the number of vehicles, which would have required additional staff and accommodation. Nor do they take account of new functions made possible by a centralised computer system, such as recalls of defective vehicles and servicing the police national computer.