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Road Tax
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the number of (a) cars, (c) commercial vehicles and (c) motor bikes which are on the road without a road tax licence for the most recent year for which figures are available. [1019]
Ms Glenda Jackson: A roadside survey involving over one million vehicles conducted in 1994 estimated that the numbers evading vehicle excise duty (VED) are as follows:
| Unlicensed stock in use (thousand) | Unlicensed stock as a percentage of stock in use | |
|---|---|---|
| Private and Light Goods | 864 | 3.7 |
| Goods | 14 | 3.1 |
| Motorcycle | 371 | 35.0 |
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has for new measures to reduce the loss in revenue from motorists not paying their road tax. [1830]
Ms Jackson: New initiatives include measures to improve the quality of the vehicle register and make it more difficult to drop out of the licensing system through the introduction of Dual Notification and Statutory Off-Road Notification schemes; the introduction of a national scheme to wheelclamp and impound unlicensed vehicles later this year; and the trialling of camera technology to automate the detection process.
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what schemes exist to deal with motorists who fail to pay their road tax.[1828]
Ms Jackson: Police and traffic wardens detect unlicensed vehicles as part of their normal duties and report them to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) for follow-up action, including prosecution.
The Agency and the police also conduct "blitz campaigns" throughout the country. These take the form of extensive localised publicity to encourage motorists to relicense their vehicles, or risk being caught in subsequent police checks.
Police and traffic wardens place conspicuous red notices on the windscreens of parked unlicensed vehicles. These advise motorists that an offence has been detected and that they should take out a licence immediately.
Further new initiatives are being developed to supplement the current enforcement effort and reduce the level of VED evasion.
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Mr. Vaz:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what estimate he has made of the number of motorists who failed to pay their road tax in the last year; and what was the estimated loss of revenue. [1829]
Ms Jackson:
The number of unlicensed vehicles in use on the public road in Great Britain at the end of December 1996 was estimated at 1.5 million. The estimated loss through evasion in 1996-97 was £175 million which represents 4.1 per cent., of the revenue due.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what is the length of franchise currently operated by Great North Eastern Railways; and what plans he has to allow for the franchise to be lengthened. [1142]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
The franchise term runs for seven years from April 1996. We have no plans to allow for the term to be lengthened.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the future of Crossrail. [1129]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
On 2 April 1996, the then Secretary of State for Transport announced that he had asked the Chairman of Railtrack to consider the project further. We will consider the future of Crossrail in the light of both Railtrack's views when received, and our own priorities for transport in London.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to initiate a review of the funding for the transport minor works schemes. [1137]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
The government will be giving consideration over the coming months to the funding of local transport infrastructure including support for minor schemes.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the public service obligation grant for each of the last 10 years. [1140]
Mrs. Glenda Jackson:
The information requested, for the seven years from 1987-88 to 1993-94 is as follows:
| Year | Public Service Obligation Grant Payments (£ million) |
|---|---|
| 1987-88 | 794 |
| 1988-89 | 473 |
| 1989-90 | 501 |
| 1990-91 | 602 |
| 1991-92 | 892 |
| 1992-93 | 1,155 |
| 1993-94 | 930 |
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| Year | Public Service Obligation Grant Payments (£ million) |
|---|---|
| 1994-95 | 1,783 |
| 1995-96 | 1,669 |
| 1996-97 | 1,813 |
Channel Tunnel
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) if he will list the contractual obligations on London and Continental Railways to introduce daytime and night sleeper services from north of London to the continent via the channel tunnel; [1149]
- (2) what powers he has to ensure that London and Continental introduce overnight sleeper services from north of London to the continent via the channel tunnel.[1147]
Ms Glenda Jackson: The provision of regional day and night services through the Channel Tunnel is a commercial matter for London and Continental Railways, who are contractually obliged to promote a Transport and Works Act Order for a link between the West Coast Main Line and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. This link would be used by regional services. LCR accordingly lodged an application in January and I hope that Parliament will soon have the opportunity to debate it.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when he expects daytime through services from north of London through the channel tunnel to be introduced; and what steps he has taken or expects to take to encourage the introduction of these services. [1146]
Ms Jackson: London and Continental Railways, along with their European railway partners are responsible for international passenger services through the Channel Tunnel. I understand that they plan to start regional services to and from Paris this year.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (1) if he will list the contributions made by Her Majesty's Government for the purchase of the British Eurostar trains which were given to London and Continental Railways; and if he will list the annual repayments to Her Majesty's Government and when the payments will terminate; [1150]
- (2) if he will list the contributions made by Her Majesty's Government and British Rail in the building, preparation and introduction of Eurostar sleeper services; and which of these funds are recoverable. [1148]
Ms Jackson:
These trains are all owned or leased by Eurostar (UK) Ltd. (EUKL). EUKL, (previously European Passenger Services Ltd.) was transferred to London and Continental Railways (LCR) on 31 May 1996 as an integral part of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link project. An explanatory memorandum on the contracts and agreements between the Government and LCR is in
2 Jun 1997 : Column: 58
the Library. While European Passenger Services was in Government ownership (9 May 1994 to 31 May 1996), direct grants totalling £423.7 million were made towards running costs and investment. No specific sums were, however, earmarked for the purchase of Eurostar trainsets, or for the introduction of European sleeper services. These grants are not recoverable but there are provisions in the Transfer Agreements for the EUKL assets and liabilities to revert to Government in the event that LCR should fail.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will list the total amount spent on lawyers, accountants, consultants and other professionals for the purposes of privatising the railways. [1127]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
Expenditure by the Department of Transport, the Office of Passenger Rail Franchising, and the Office of the Rail Regulator since 1992-93 is as follows:
| £ million | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-93 | 1993-94 | 1994-95 | 1995-96 | 1996-97 | |
| Lawyers | 1.4 | 4.7 | 10.7 | 17.5 | 10.6 |
| Accountants | 1.7 | 2.0 | 5.0 | 8.8 | 8.7 |
| Other Consultants and Professionals | 2.4 | 5.8 | 11.7 | 25.4 | 21.1 |
| £ million | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-93 | 1993-94 | 1994-95 | 1995-96 | 1996-97 | |
| British Rail | -- | 92 | 85 | 101 | 54 |
| Railtrack | -- | -- | 46 | 32 | (16)-- |
(16) Railtrack was privatised in May 1996.
Any breakdown of the figures for BR and Railtrack would be for the organisations themselves to provide.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions which aspects of the rail franchising and privatisation process he plans to refer to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. [1135]
Ms Glenda Jackson:
As part of our current review of railway regulation, we will form a view on whether any of the privatised rail businesses should be referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. On 22 May 1997, the President of the Board of Trade announced that, under the Fair Trading Act 1973, she had decided to refer to the MMC the acquisition by National Express Group plc of the ScotRail and Central Trains rail franchises.
Sir George Young:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the regulatory framework for the privatised railways. [1503]
2 Jun 1997 : Column: 59
Ms Jackson:
Regulation of the rail industry, and the sanctions available to the regulators, need to be strengthened. We have started thorough review of rail regulation to identify exactly what improvements need to be made.
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