To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many abandoned motor vehicles have been collected in Leeds in (a) 2000, (b) 2001 and (c) 2002; and if he will make a statement. [114383]
I have been asked to reply.The question on abandoned vehicles was asked for first time in the 2000–01 Municipal Waste Management Survey. The numbers of abandoned vehicles reported by Leeds City Council are listed as follows.
Leeds | |
Year | Numbers |
2000–01 | 877 |
2001–02 | 1,707 |
The Government is currently developing proposals for the reform and modernisation of vehicle registration and licensing, to reduce evasion and to bear down on vehicle crime. In response to the recommendations of a report commissioned by the Department for Transport from the Jill Dando Institute of Crime Science DfT have established a Modernising Vehicle Registration Implementation Board (MVRIB).
This includes representatives of motorists" organisations, the motor trade, the police and the insurance industry to advise on and develop those proposals.
The Finance Act 2002 contained provisions under which the responsibility for licensing and taxing vehicles will be placed on the registered keeper, who will remain liable for doing so until such time that the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has properly been notified of a change of keeper. These proposals will also mean that it is not necessary for a vehicle to be detected on the road for effective enforcement action to take place. The implementation of these new powers is at the heart of MVRIB"s agenda.