09 Jan 2001
Scottish Secretary John Reid today called on Scots hauliers to apply now for rebates on Vehicle Excise Duty for their lorries.
Up to 20,000 Scottish hauliers could benefit from lorry road tax rebates, following the decision by Chancellor Gordon Brown last November to give rebates of up to 50% of annual Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) for all goods vehicles over 7.5 tonnes.
Urging all goods vehicles operators to respond to the rebate application forms which will be sent out by the end of this week, Mr Reid said:
"The Government wants to see Scotland’s hauliers and lorry operators benefiting as soon as possible from the changes in VED. With rebates of up to around £2000 available for the largest lorries, I urge the operators of Scotland’s 20,000 eligible goods vehicles to apply for their rebates without delay.
He added: "Up to 20,000 Scottish farmers, forestry firms and other eligible agricultural producers could also gain from the abolition of VED for agricultural vehicles announced in the pre-Budget report in November. A consultation on these proposals will be going out shortly."
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. In November's Pre-Budget Statement to Parliament the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a major reform of Vehicle Excise Duty for goods vehicles, including a cut of £300 million per year and simplification of the current system.
2. The Chancellor also announced transitional arrangements to allow the cut to take effect as soon as possible. These arrangements included a rebate on all goods vehicle licenses in force on 30 November, worth up to 50% of the cost of the tax disc, and a similar reduction in the cost of licenses taken after 1 December. This would take the form of a rebate deducted at source when the license is taken out.
3. DVLA is committed to processing the applications for Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) rebates within 28 days or less. The first payments were made before the end of last year. Over £6million has been paid so far in refunds.
4. The Chancellor also announced a consultation on the future of lorry VED, which closes on 12 January.