Parking ticket on windscreen (© ronfromyork / Shutterstock)
We asked four motoring experts what they thought of the Government’s four-fold increase in fines for speeding on motorways.
Are the four-fold rises in motorway speeding fines justified?
NO: Rupert Lipton, National Motorists’ Action Group
“It will have a serious chilling effect. We will find motorists will be deterred from going to court when they don’t believe that they are guilty of an offence. For general speeding allegations you’re allowed to take a fixed penalty, currently £60 and three penalty points on your licence, or agree to complete a speed awareness course. But if you wish to challenge it you can currently face six points and a £1000 fine on non-motorway roads or £2500 on the motorway. That is a sufficient deterrent.”
YES: Jeremy Wright MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Justice
“Financial penalties set at the right level can be an effective way of punishing criminals and deterring them from further offending.”
Is it right for councils to increase parking revenues?
NO: Hugh Bladon, Alliance of British Drivers
“You don’t have to be a sceptic to think that they’re out to fill their coffers. People who drive cars are an easy target. It is the simplest thing to paint new yellow lines and set up pinch points as a means of getting money. Drivers are already hit by excessive motoring taxes, and they’ll be extremely angry if they suspect they’re being used as a cash cow. Councils should be looking to reduce their payrolls rather than to milk drivers.”
YES: Peter Box, Local Government Association
“The number of parking tickets issued by councils is always determined by the amount of drivers parking illegally. More recent figures show that the number of parking tickets issued last year went down. This means fewer drivers are parking dangerously outside schools, blocking roads and pavements or stopping people parking near their homes or local shops.”