§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what changes have been made to the rules on the(a) environmental, (b) safety and (c) security standards of cars and light vehicles imported from outside the EU since 1 January 2000; what assessment of the effect of the changes has been made; and what further changes are planned. [86114]
§ Mr. JamiesonMost of the vehicles that are not the subject of a European or National type approval are subject to The Motor Vehicles (Approval) Regulations 2001. Those regulations came into force on 1 February that year and replaced the Motor Vehicles (Approval) Regulations 1996 as amended. The regulations prescribe the technical standards the vehicle must meet before it can be licensed and registered for use on public roads. Compliance is determined by individual inspection of the vehicle. The main change was to replace the earlier single-tier set of technical standards with a two-tier system. The first tier—standard Single Vehicle Approval—set technical standards appropriate for vehicles entering service in very low numbers, such as amateur builds. The second tier—Enhanced Single Vehicle Approval (ESVA)—applied higher standards for vehicles being sold or entering service in competition with the mainstream supply of mass-produced cars and light goods vehicles in Britain. ESVA is much closer to the European or British type-approval standards for key safety, environmental and anti-theft items required of the mainstream manufacturers. It thus ensures a consistent level of consumer protection relative to the numbers of vehicles involved.
We expect to consult very shortly on proposed amendments that reflect practical experience since the new arrangements were introduced. These will include:
Changes to the arrangements for Disabled Persons Vehicles and for personal imports by serving members of the Armed Forces.Various other generally applicable changes on points of technical detail and procedures, most of which would simplify the inspection.