§ Mr. David NicholsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 3 July 1992,Official Report, column 726, what recommendations the vehicle inspectorate and the police forces have received underlying the policy of prohibiting from road use vehicles (a) not carrying tax discs or (b) which are unroadworthy; and if he will make a statement on any extra measures he is taking in respect of expected movements of new age travellers in the coming summer.
§ Mr. KeyThe vehicle inspectorate normally imposes an immediate prohibition on vehicles which are in a dangerous condition. This prevents or restricts their use on the road until the defect has been rectified. Where there is a lesser defect, it may impose a delayed prohibition, which comes into effect only if the defect has not been rectified within a specified time limit. The police can only impose immediate prohibitions. Policy on prohibitions is a matter for chief constables, but generally the police use the same criteria as the vehicle inspectorate in deciding whether a defect is serious enough to merit an immediate prohibition. There are no powers for either the police or the vehicle inspectorate to prohibit vehicles not displaying valid tax discs.
Most of the vehicle inspectorate enforcement resources are used to ensure that lorries, buses and coaches are safe, although some private vehicles are checked with police co-operation. No extra measures by the vehicle inspectorate are planned at present in respect of new age travellers. The deployment of police resources is a matter for chief constables.
However, vehicles not displaying valid tax discs may be stopped by the police and the keepers prosecuted/fined. The maximum penalty is £1,000 or five times the annual rate of duty whichever is the greatest. Furthermore, a valid tax disc cannot be obtained unless the keeper is in possession of a valid roadworthiness test certificate.