Byers 'snubs' dumped cars plan

Revolutionary plans to catch road tax dodgers and sweep thousands of dumped cars off London streets have been "snubbed" by Stephen Byers.

Wandsworth council called on the Transport Secretary to give borough authorities new powers to clamp untaxed cars, until the owners proved they had paid for their tax discs in full.

It would have given councils free rein to deal with the flood of dumped cars and keep proceeds from the clamping fee to fund the operation.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority would have received a huge boost from the reclaimed road tax.

Wandsworth claimed their proposals would transform the capital by stemming the deluge of wrecks left in residential areas following the collapse of the market for scrap metal.

It would also allow them to remove untaxed cars which have to be dealt with by the DVLA. Currently local authorities can deal only with cars proven to have been dumped.

According to Wandsworth, however, Mr Byers "snubbed" their proposals, which would have saved the taxpayer millions of pounds each year and speeded up the removal of derelict cars.

The Wandsworth scheme would have gone further than the Government's own limited pilot programme which uses local councils as contractors.

The council suggested that instead of setting up complicated joint arrangements between the DVLA and each local authority, he should transfer all enforcement for untaxed vehicles to councils who could act swiftly to remove cars before they became magnets for vandals, children or arsonists.

Wandsworth says its plan would have acted as a serious deterrent to motorists tempted to avoid paying tax and abandoning old cars.

The Treasury's own figures show that one in 25 vehicles is untaxed and that unlicensed motorists cost taxpayers £150million a year. In London, the figure for untaxed or uninsured vehicles may be as high as one in 10.

Wandsworth claims it gets 4,300 complaints about untaxed vehicles each year, with other councils claiming a similar number. The council says the DVLA is unable to act effectively to removed untaxed vehicles; it has just one office, in Sidcup, serving all of London. Wandsworth says that ministers could easily have granted powers directly to councils under Vehicle Excise Duty regulations but that they received a "dismissive" reply from the Department of Transport.

"They did not even reply to specific points, even though we are desperate to do something about the dumped car problem," said a spokesman.

Kathy Tracey, Wandsworth's cabinet member for transport, attacked the Government's own scheme as "too timid".

"Of all the problems Mr Byers has at the moment this is one for which there is a ready-made solution. He could revolutionise the system for chasing car tax dodgers. He doesn't need to waste time on pilot schemes; councils can do this job now."

A spokesman for the Department of Transport firmly denied that Wandsworth had been rebuffed, and said council officials were still welcomed at a DVLA meeting planned as part of a wider consultation into how to tackle dumped cars.

"They have not been snubbed and are still welcome to put their case," said a department spokesman.