Free Classic Road Tax Petition

Post by **Gareth** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 4:54 pm

Found this petition on the Government website

Classic Car Petition

Spread the word and get everyone to sign it.

When the Tories were in power, many moons ago, they introduced the 25 year rolling exemption, so as cars became older, they would gradually tumble into the exemption from tax. However, this was frozen at the 31st December 1972, when Labour took hold.

From our perspective (99% of Minors being Tax Exempt anyway), it would show how many people are taking an interest in the exemption for classic cars.

Post by **bigginger** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 5:12 pm

Is this not the one we signed a while ago?

Post by **Dryad** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 7:03 pm

It seems the same petition has been set up by two different people, and therefore splitting the vote between them. The other is at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/historiccartax/
Best vote on both, just in case!

Post by **chickenjohn** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 7:07 pm

I have voted on both, but the most important one to vote on is the one about the £200 tracking device Tony want us all to fit, and the astronomical charges that will result.

Post by **Gareth** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 7:18 pm

D'you know... I thought it sounded familiar!

Ah well, I appear to have signed both of them, in that case. Sorry, all!

Post by **Onne** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 8:28 pm

About the tracking device... surely such devices wouldn't work on positive earth cars if you catch my drift

Post by **picky** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 9:17 pm

and I imagine such devices can be left next to a battery in the garage also

Post by **bigginger** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 9:39 pm

I also can't see any way I could be made to fit one...

Post by **chrisd87** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 1:27 pm

Me too. A few minutes in the microwave wouldn't do the box any harm, surely

Post by **chickenjohn** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 1:44 pm

bigginger wrote:I also can't see any way I could be made to fit one...

You'd have to as it would be a requirement for the MOT.

Post by **Packedup** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 2:34 pm

Considering how there's already many different road tax methods and brackets, why not make the spy in the sky mandatory on all new cars sold only? It's the fairest way of imposing an unfair system.

Plus it might help the environment - If enough people could be put off the system because of cost and (more importantly IMO) civil liberties issues, then less new cars would be sold. Resulting in preservation of existing ones, leading to less waste and far lower production pollution

I think I kept that apolitical enough ;)

Post by **rayofleamington** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 2:51 pm

I also can't see any way I could be made to fit one...

yes - fair point if it's only needed for roadworthy cars ;-)
at present I don't need one either

As for charging parents £180+ a month for doing the school run, I'm not sure it will be a bad thing. Kids would have to walk, thus reducing health problems, and the congestion problems in towns would clear up overnight.

Post by **chrisd87** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 3:00 pm

As for charging parents £180+ a month for doing the school run, I'm not sure it will be a bad thing. Kids would have to walk, thus reducing health problems

I'm sorry but I have to disagree. 'School run mums' are an easy target for a cheap shot but you have to consider the circumstances.

It would have been totally impracticable for me - I lived about 2 1/2 miles from my school and the walk would have taken a good 45 mins (over a large hill) which is hardly nice in the dark or the rain/cold. Plus I had to carry a laptop and loads of books to school with me which wouldn't have been much fun or very safe either. When I got my licence I drove my Minor to school

Still at least that's in the past now!

Post by **rayofleamington** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 3:12 pm

It would have been totally impracticable for me

At school I used to cycle 2 miles, and had a rucksack. When it was thick snow, we used to walk instead as it wasn't possible to cycle. The school run was just starting to get fashionable back then, and these days is so bad it turns many towns into a no-go zone twice a day.
When at Uni I made it 11 miles on a bus without complaining.
Nowadays I cycle to work, rain or shine, although it's only a mile and a half.
People have existed by using their legs for thousands of years, and been much healthier for it.

Post by **chrisd87** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 3:34 pm

Four Yorkshiremen come to mind

In many areas (including where I lived) cycling is not an option as it simply isn't safe. The road I'd have had to cycle down was narrow, had no cycle-paths or street lamps and 50mph traffic. I was simply not prepared to do that and nor were most other people! There were no busses where I lived, either.

Walking is slow, you get wet, and you get your laptop nicked. Not a lot of fun.

People have existed by using their legs for thousands of years, and been much healthier for it.

In which case why were cars, bicycles and trains invented in the first place?

I can think of a few reasons.

Anyway isn't this all rather off-topic?

Post by **bigginger** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 3:57 pm

chickenjohn wrote: You'd have to as it would be a requirement for the MOT.

So required for half an hour every year...

Post by **rayofleamington** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 4:38 pm

Four Yorkshiremen come to mind

Yes - rather!

However the simple fact is that schools 'were' located in sensible areas with catchment areas that limited the distance that people had to travel (by foot) - recent changes have negated the logic of catchment areas, and the removal of school buses from villages has been replaced them with millions of extra car journeys - this country has only got itself to blame.
If you build a factory, you first have to get planning permission which involves beurocrats checking that the road network can support the traffic requirements. Schools were never built with the school run in mind. Round here (and pretty much everywhere) there is not the road infrastructure (including off street carparks) to support it, so the roads get blocked, and everything grinds to a halt.

Anyway isn't this all rather off-topic?

yes - but that's transport policy for you ;-)

Post by **chickenjohn** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 5:17 pm

I agree, I used to walk to school, I never got driven to school and I don;t see why anybody should nowadays. I went to 6th form on the bus and used to walk (30-40mins) to university. I've also done a fair bit of cycling to work- and thats not easy now I live 10miles from work.

I don;t see why we should have to suffer because of the school run, I think they should return to the catchment system and school buses.

Post by **Gareth** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 6:42 pm

I think this really has moved off-topic, hasn't it?

Good debate, however.

Post by **chrisd87** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 7:24 pm

I went on the bus to school for a year or two, but it was far too unreliable (not to mention being quite expensive) and the service was eventually cancelled. This left no practical option but to go by car.

I agree that in general many schools are too far from the communities they serve, but in that case it's this that needs addressing - not people doing the school run. Very young kids also cannot be expected to go to school entirely on their own for obvious safety reasons.

Also you need to consider that it's not always practical (particularly in the case of secondary schools and 6th form colleges) to have them around every street corner. Outside of cities lots of people have to travel a long way to their schools (some in mine travelled more than 20 miles) and the car is the only option.