'A very significant and welcome step forward' - Local MP and Crime Commissioner welcome launch of parliamentary inquiry into illegal 'ghost plates'
West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster and local MP Sarah Coombes have welcomed the launch of a new Parliamentary Vehicle Registration Plate Inquiry
It has been described as a 'major milestone' in their long-running campaign to crack down on illegal ‘ghost plates' in the West Midlands.
The inquiry, led by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Transport Safety, will examine the growing problem of untraceable number plates, which allow dangerous drivers and criminals to evade detection, enforcement and accountability on the UK’s roads.
The move follows the success of Operation Phantom – an initiative led by PCC Simon Foster and West Midlands Police’s Roads Policing Unit with Redspeed International – which used cutting-edge technology to expose thousands of illegal number plates operating across Birmingham.
Those initial findings provide an early understanding of the scale of the issue, with so-called ‘ghost plates’ often used by offenders to avoid fines, but can also be used to commit more serious crimes.
Welcoming the parliamentary inquiry, PCC Simon Foster, who also chairs the West Midlands Road Safety Strategic Partnership Board, said: “This is a very significant and welcome step forward, in the fight against illegal 3D and 4D number plates – known as ghost plates. I’ve been campaigning for national action on this issue for some time, and I’m pleased to see that our work here in the West Midlands is now gathering serious momentum.
“This inquiry is about exposing offenders, bringing them to justice and keeping people safe on our roads. It’s vital that we now build on this progress and deliver the changes needed to tighten up the law and keep the people and communities of our region safe and secure.”
Sarah Coombes, MP for West Bromwich and a member of the APPG for Transport Safety, said: “I’m pleased that in the West Midlands we are in the vanguard of action to crack down on illegal number plates. The results of Operation Phantom exposed just how big the problem of ghost plates is in our region, which is why there could be no better time for a parliamentary inquiry into this issue.
“I’m calling for tougher penalties for people who wilfully evade detection by ANPR and who are making our roads unsafe. I hope this inquiry will find that there is no excuse for using a ghost plate and demand an end to this number plate Wild West.”
