To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) prosecutions and (b) fixed penalty parking tickets were issued to motorists in (i) Westminster and (ii) the remaining London boroughs during each of the past five years for illegal parking on (1) a single yellow line and (2) a parking meter; what was the average penalty levied in the case of (a) fines and (b) prosecutions; what considerations underlie the choice of penalty for such offences; and if he will make a statement.

Information is not available in the detailed form requested. A total of 7,696 non-endorsable obstruction, waiting and parking offences were dealt with by prosecution in the Metropolitan police district in 1991 and 1,844,595 by fixed penalty notice. The average fine imposed following prosecution was £31 and the standard amount imposed after a fixed penalty was £16.Fixed penalty levels are set by the Home Secretary and are reviewed periodically. They are intended to provide a penalty which is proportionate to the offence.