Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) Road Tax threat

That would be annoying: Tow of the three in our fleet are olde enough that they wouldn't be caught in the clawback, but the A35 has a CO2 rating of 167: the renewal asks for £145, but if it went up to the first year rate it would be £530, about the same as Tarka.
I would suggest that this retrospective approach will not go far, but the same tax every year after the first year will.

Update: the VED reminder arrived inviting me to pay £145 for the period to 31 March 2021.
I went on line and paid.
I will not pay any more if they come back and ask.

I've also asked my MP, John Glenn (one of the Treasury Junior Ministers) for clarification.

Isn't he still in Earth orbit somewhere Peter

I don't think they apply a retrospection when you've paid that year Peter. The new rate will only apply from the date it becomes law.

From John Glen MP


Thank you for contacting me regarding VED in the recent budget. In terms of the changes planned to VED in budget, please see the following extract from the Budget itself which explains the measures we’re making in this budget regarding VED.

Vehicle Excise Duty (VED): Rates –
The government will uprate VED rates for cars, vans and motorcycles in line with RPI from 1 April 2020. To support the haulage sector, the government will freeze HGV VED and the HGV Road User Levy for 2020-21. (53)

VED: Zero emission vehicles (ZEVs) –
From 1 April 2020, the government will exempt all ZEVs registered until 31 March 2025 from the VED ‘expensive car’ supplement. The measure will incentivise the uptake of ZEVs to support the phasing out of petrol and diesel vehicles. (44)

VED: Motorhomes –
From 12 March 2020, the government will reduce annual VED liabilities for most new motorhomes to a flat rate of £265, which will rise to £270 for 2020-21, as motorhome manufacturers and dealers will not be required to provide a CO2 emissions figure when registering new motorhomes with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. From 1 April 2021, the government will align the VED treatment of new motorhomes and vans. (18)

Call for evidence on VED –
The government is publishing a call for evidence which will include how VED can be used to support the take-up of zero and ultra-low emission vehicles and reduce overall emissions from road vehicles.

There is speculation in the press about one of many proposals which have been suggested following the call for evidence. This is not government policy as things stand and the government is calling for evidence in this particular area, this is simply a paper which details one possible proposal.


Yes, Glen, not Glenn... John Glen is Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister, where he has responsibility for banking and financial services policy. He the sixth-most senior ministerial post in the UK Treasury, after the First Lord of the Treasury, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the Paymaster-General and the Financial Secretary to the Treasury. It is not a cabinet-level post. Based on the fate of past incumbents, it is a position held by people destined for high office. So he knows people. He is also a good local MP, always replies to my e-mails.

Peter, thanks, lots of detail there

JohnV6, as I heard it, it was a potential "review of the current VED system (last revised 2017)"

Yes well after spending like crazy they will need tax someone. These things usually happen sadly.

hmm... I saw a report that noted transport's contribution to carbons was a stubborn 30% or so of the whole economy. "stubborn" because as the efficiency of vehicles has improved it's been offset by the rise in the number of vehicles and their increased use.

It would be good if the VED consultation separated out light passenger vehicles from heavier ones - which pollute inversely to their number

indeed, weight might be a useful factor in VED - if only to discourage the scourge of the SUV. At the moment VED varies by 3 factors - emissions, propulsion source, and cost. Maybe they should ignore cost - because if you're going to charge someone for buying an electric vehicle over £50k you're incentivising them to choose the car they want irrespective of the power unit. Whereas reducing weight generally reduces emissions (the exception being car shaped batteries aka Tesla - but a blanket zero emissions rate on electrics takes care of that.)

So how about a VED system comprising:
- a new car charge in its first year, which can be offset against an old car of equivalent or higher emissions being scrapped, so that the size of the car park isn't increased, and the net emissions effect of buying a new car is to reduce the emissions of the nation's car park
- an annual charge because you're putting a car on the road. It's a flat tax on all vehicles
- an emissions charge in three bands: zero (for electrics & cleanest hybrids) medium (for hybrids) and high for everything else
- a weight multiplier on the emissions charge: reduce the charge by 50% for vehicles under 1500kgs, no change for 1500-2000kgs, +50% for vehicles over 2000kgs

+ a simplified tax on fuel, framed as a pollution tax. It's a very simple "user pays" mechanism, which would incentivise high mileage drivers into cleaner cars.

You'd aim for a hybrid 4 seat family car covering say 6k miles a year to cost less to run than it does to tax & run the equivalent petrol or diesel car today. SUVs should cost more if they're petrol or diesel powered. And not reduce their cost if hybrid, because of the weight penalty, so that people are incentivised away from SUVs unless they're very cleanly fuelled.

There has to be some bumper tax increases over the next 5 years to pay for the bale out of people and companies during the Virus Scare assuming that we can get the Virus problem down to a handleable level in the Autumn.

Or a lot of "Quantitative Easing" = devaluation.