the pilot consultation on civil sanctions it was estimated these costs would be £3860, plus the civil sanction.
If the Registrar is given the powers to issue civil sanctions by the Secretary of State, will your National Association be in a position to help. The Driving Instructors Branch of Unite the Union are the only National Association that has a dedicated legal team from Unite the Union to help and assist with this sort of matter.
Dib-Unite oppose the introduction of civil sanctions.
The following is a Ministerial statement;
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Written Ministerial Statement - Rt Hon. Michael Fallon, Minister of State for Business and Enterprise; Department for Business, Innovation and Skills - 8 November 2012
I am announcing today that when considering whether to make Orders under the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Act 2008 to provide a regulator with powers to impose certain civil sanctions as an alternative to prosecution the Government will, in general, observe the following principles:
• Powers to impose Fixed Monetary Penalties, Variable Monetary Penalties and Restoration Notices will, as a general rule, only be granted where their used is restricted to undertakings with more than 250 employees; and
• Powers to impose Enforcement Undertakings, Stop Notices and Compliance Notices may be granted without restriction as to the size of undertaking against whom they might be used.
I believe that this approach should enable Departments to introduce Orders under the Act that provide for a more flexible enforcement system and reduce the burdens on criminal courts. Safeguards on the use of civil sanctions are already contained in the Act.
This policy will provide a further safeguard as regards new Orders under the Act namely that, as a general rule, Fixed Monetary Penalties, Variable Monetary Penalties and Restoration Notices will only be applied to larger companies rather than to Small and Medium Enterprises who might feel less equipped to challenge the basis for such sanctions.