To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many applications for vehicle excise duty refunds from (a) private owners and (b) motor dealerships have been processed by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in each month since January 2008; and what the monetary value was of the refunds made in each such month. (286791)

The following table provides the total number and value of vehicle excise duty refunds processed by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) since January 2008. Separate figures are not available for private owners and motor dealerships. However, since January 2009 only the current or previous registered keeper would receive a refund of vehicle excise duty and then only after informing the DVLA why the vehicle no longer requires a valid tax disc:

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what plans he has for levels of staff recruitment to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency; and if he will make a statement. (286979)

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is committed to efficiency and will continue to critically assess that to reflect the economic situation and customer need, including contributing fully to future public spending rounds. We anticipate that it is likely that there will continue to be turnover, for example in a number of specialist vacancies such as Accountants and Procurement Specialists that will need to be recruited. Fixed term and temporary appointments are also used to manage fluctuating business demands.