Motor Vehicle Licensing Applications

HC Deb 23 July 1993 vol 229 c405W

Mrs. Anne Campbell

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what considerations govern the number of sub-post offices permitted to conduct motor vehicle licensing applications.

Mr. Key

The aim is to provide an across-the-counter service within reasonable travelling distance for motorists with an option to relicense by post if this is more convenient.

Vehicle licences are issued by 4,000 of the 20,000 post offices in Great Britain. For this service the Driver and Vehicle- Licensing Agency (DVLA)—effectively the taxpayer—pays a substantial sum of money to Post Office Counters Ltd. (POCL). Any increase in the number of licence-issuing post offices would increase the cost of collection without increasing the overall sum paid into the Exchequer.