Today I supported a Bill presented in the House of Commons aimed at tackling the use of illegal number plates, often associated with anti-social driving on roads in East Worthing and Shoreham.
The Vehicle Registration Offences (Penalty Points) Bill, which I have supported and presented by Andrew Griffith MP (Arundel & South Downs), aims to amend the punishments for keeping or driving a vehicle with an obstructed number plate, or without a number plate. Currently, the punishment for these offences is a £100 fixed penalty notice increasing to a maximum of £1,000 in court, but the Bill seeks to add three penalty points to an offender’s licence in addition to this.
In recent months, through the uplift of an additional 6,000 new police officers nationally by March next year, police forces around the UK have ramped up their efforts in tackling anti-social drivers and motorcyclists across the increased usage of fixed and mobile speed cameras. However, where legible and compliant number plates are not displayed, speed cameras are unable to aid in the prosecution of anti-social road users. The Vehicle Registration Offences (Penalty Points) Bill aims to generate greater number plate compliance by making these offences legally enforceable with licence penalty points.
This comes as the Automatic Number Plate Recognition Independent Advisory Group release a report on the effectiveness of the number plate regime in the UK. The report finds that the current roadside penalty of a £100 fixed penalty notice is not an effective deterrent against non-compliant number plates in the UK. It goes on to suggest that a more robust penalty regime for number plate offences would enable a simpler prosecution route for non-compliance.
I am hopeful that the Vehicle Registration Offences (Penalty Points) Bill will close an important loophole in the law. Currently, anti-social drivers and motorcyclists defy speed limits and number plate recognition cameras seeing non-compliant number plates as a solution to avoid harsh consequences. Penalty points on the driving licenses of anti-social road users leading to higher insurance premiums and its ultimate loss would however be a real deterrent against the dangerous behaviour.
