THE Government's tax-raising agenda at the expense of the motorist has been attacked by Peugeot managing director Tod Evans, who made renewed calls for a scrappage tax to be introduced to remove old, polluting cars from the UK's roads. Describing the Government's position on escalating levels of indirect taxation to penalise car ownership as 'wrong', Evans said: 'If the Government truly wishes to accelerate the greening of the environment, it could move to make the car parc younger and, therefore, less polluting, by seriously evaluating the introduction of a scrappage tax.'

He questioned where the Government's mandate and support was to continue to increase fuel duties, introduce graduated vehicle excise duty, workplace parking charges and road tolls and continue to penalise diesel. 'All these ideas are to present green credentials to justify ever-higher levels of motor-related indirect taxes within an agenda of restricting car usage, without a viable and alternative transport system,' said Evans. But, he argued, if all vehicles over 10 years old were taken off the roads and replaced by new vehicles, exhaust emissions would be cut by 25% immediately and by 50% within two years.

He said: 'A relatively modest incentive of £500 to those prepared to scrap their old vehicles in return for buying a new one would have a dramatic and immediate effect on air quality, and the £500 outlay could easily be funded from the additional VAT collected in the new car purchase.'