Police slam small EEC plates
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• Police chiefs are fighting an EEC scheme to introduce smaller European-style registration number plates on all vehicles, including lorries and coaches, claiming they are difficult to read.
The plan under discussion in Brussels this week is to harmonise the design of all number plates in the EEC countries. It is proposed that each plate should bear a "flag" with 12 stars representing the 12 member countries, with an E for Europe on the left side and a GB for Britain on the right. Brussels also wants a pan-European colour scheme, of blue letters and numbers on a white background.
The characters will have to be smaller to make room for the extra information. "Years of research have gone into the size and colour of our number plates," said a British official this week. "Police say their job will be harder as it won't be easy to read anything smaller."
Nonetheless, EEC chiefs are determined to get their way and give transport a European look by 1992, when frontiers and trade barriers are due to be removed. An EEC official says: "The French, Italians and Belgians all have plates with smaller numbers and different colours. They don't want to change either. We must meet in the middle — but it will be a tough process."
Also under consideration is a proposal for number plates with reflectors so they can be more easily seen at night.