Written questions by Coombes.

What discussions her Department has had with the DVLA on 4D number plates.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), various police forces and Trading Standards in relation to the supply and use of illegal number plates as well as number plates with raised characters, commonly known as ‘4D plates’. Some 4D plates can also be described as ‘ghost’ plates where the characters are constructed from materials that are unable to be read by infrared Automatic Number Plate Recognition systems. Work is currently ongoing to quantify the number of illegal plates that may be in circulation.It is already an offence to sell number plates that do not meet the requirements of the relevant legislation. That offence is punishable by a fine of up to £2,500. The DVLA works with the police and Trading Standards to help prosecute suppliers found to be operating outside of the law. Number plates are currently supplied by private businesses who are required to be registered with the DVLA. Suppliers who fail to request proof of identification or entitlement to the registration number can be subject to enforcement action, including fines and removal from the Register of Number Plate Suppliers via a court order.

What discussions she has had with the DVLA on tackling the use of modified number plates designed to evade detection by automatic number plate recognition cameras, also known ghost plates.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is working with the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), various police forces and Trading Standards in relation to the supply and use of modified number plates, commonly known as ‘ghost plates’. One element of the work underway is to quantify the number of illegal plates that are in circulation. The evidence received will support further action to address this issue.

What discussions she has had with relevant stakeholders on tackling the use of modified number plates designed to evade detection by automatic number plate recognition cameras, also known as ghost plates.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is working with the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), various police forces and Trading Standards in relation to the supply and use of modified number plates, commonly known as ‘ghost plates’. One element of the work underway is to quantify the number of illegal plates that are in circulation. The evidence received will support further action to address this issue.

How many deaths were caused by illegal street racing incidents in the West Midlands in the last ten years.

Statistics and data on road injury collisions and casualties reported to and recorded by police are collected via the data collection system known as STATS19. While STATS19 collects information on the collision circumstances, vehicles involved and contrib...

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the extra cost of car insurance premiums faced by drivers from diverse ethnic backgrounds.

We are committed to tackling the increased costs of motor insurance to deliver on our manifesto commitment, including how this impacts different demographics, geographies, and communities. The cross-government Motor Insurance Taskforce, including the stak...