14% rise in car tax evasion worrying

11.32.25am BST (GMT +0100) Sat 29th Oct 2005

Commenting on Department of Transport figures showing a 14% increase in Vehicle Excise Duty, Liberal Democrat Shadow Transport Secretary Tom Brake MP said:

"The scale of the increase in vehicle tax evasion is extremely worrying, particularly as the Government have claimed to have been taking measures to clamp down on the problem.

"These figures lend further weight to the case for scrapping car tax and fuel tax, replacing both - on a revenue neutral basis - with a national road pricing scheme.

"Road user pricing would reduce congestion, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and end the problem of vehicle tax evasion once and for all."