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FUTURE LEGISLATION DVLA fee proposals: The DVLA is considering revising
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fee structures to cover the costs of changes, including the 10-yearly renewal of photocard licences. the removal of the paper counterpart and the redevelopment of vehicle systems and processes.
Operator licensing The Department for Transport (Df I) has issued a consultation looking at three main proposals: a change in the way multiple licences held in different traffic areas are administered; a change in the way fees are structured and collected; and the eventual abolition of paper vehicle discs and removal of the 28-day period of grace to use vehicles on a licence without specification. The consultation ends on 31 March 2006 (CM') February).
Euro-4/5 emissions standards: New vehicles will be required to meet these standards, which further reduce permitted vehicle emissions. Euro-4 will apply to vehicles first used on or after 1 October 2006, and Euro-5 to vehicles first used on or after 1 October 2009 ( CM 26 January).
Driver training: The EU Driver Training Directive requires both initial and periodic training of professional goods and passenger vehicle drivers. The training covers fuel economy, drivers' hours and customer service; the qualification is referred to as a Certificate of Professional Competence. Member states must lay down laws for its introduction no later than 10 September 2006, with initial training starting by September 2009 (CM 27 October 2005).
Digital tachographs : Legislation to change the launch date for digitachs could be published as early as March 2006. The requirement to fit digitachs to new vehicles will be introduced 20 days after publication (CM2 February).
Road Safety Bill: This includes the introduction of: graduated fixed penalties for speeding; fixed penalties and a deposit scheme for offences such as overloading; tougher penalties for using a hand-held mobile phone while driving; new powers to seize and dispose of uninsured vehicles; new penalties to deal with dangerous and had drivers: the piloting of motorway rest areas: better enforcement of drivers' hours rules; and a new offence of being the registered keeper of an uninsured vehicle (CM 19 January).
Third Driver Licence Directive: The EC is discussing revisions to European law as follows: standardising the photocard licence and allowing microchips: introducing limited administrative validity; harmonising the frequency of medicals; ending driver 'licence tourism' with a pan-European application process;progressive access to the most powerful motorcycles, trucks and buses; removing the flexibility of towing larger trailers on a car licence; introducing minimum requirements for the initial qualification and training of driving examiners (CM 14 July 2005).
Red diesel: HM Revenue and Customsisexpected to announce changes to the list of vehicles entitled to use rebated fuel in the 2006 Budget. Customs plans to remove the road construction vehicle category and require vehicles that are not used on the public road to comply with the Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) rules. Between now and the Budget. Customs will also be consulting further on the definitions of tractors, agricultural engines and mobile cranes. All other exempted vehicle categories will remain unchanged (CM2 February).
Highways Agency powers: Legislation is expected during 2(X)6 to allow Highways Agency traffic officers to remove or arrange removal of abandoned or broken-down vehicles from motorways and trunk roads in England, giving them the same power as the police.
EU Drivers' hours: Publication of legislation that will amend rules on daily and weekly rest, exemptions and breaks from driving is expected in spring 2006. The changes will come into effect 12 months after publication, in spring 2(X)7.
Age discrimination: New legislation will ban age discrimination when recruiting, promoting and training; remove the upper age limit for unfair dismissal and redundancy rights; and ban all retirement ages below 65 unless objectively justified. The new rules will be introduced on I October 2006 (CM 23 February).
Corporate manslaughter: The government has issued a bill creating an offence holding organisations to account for any gross failings