Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to increase the rate of prosecution of dangerous foreign drivers.

Road traffic legislation applies to everyone using British roads, including drivers and vehicles from other countries. Any driver stopped by the police for motoring offences in the UK will continue to be punished, whether British or foreign.

The Cross Border Enforcement Directive (2015/413/EU) assists countries in the prosecution of foreign vehicle owners when that vehicle is suspected of committing one (or more) proscribed offence in another Member State. In Britain, we prosecute the driver for these offences.

Additionally, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) operates the graduated fixed penalty and financial deposit system to enforce road traffic law for commercial goods and passenger carrying vehicles. The system covers areas such as: brakes, steering and drivers’ hours. The DVSA issues fixed penalties for non-compliance and vehicles are prohibited from moving until the defect has been rectified. In 2018/2019, DVSA inspected a total of 198,045 vehicles at roadside checks, including 104,697 non-UK vehicles.