By Gerrard Clark - 6th July 2011
Peers have condemned American diplomats for not paying millions of pounds owed in congestion and parking fines.
At Lords questions yesterday transport minister Earl Atlee said that there is no way to prosecute or enforce the payment of these charges because foreign diplomatic missions are immune from UK courts.
Lord Faulkner of Worcester (Lab) called this "an absurd situation".
He said from the start of last year to April of this year, the amount of fines unpaid by embassies went up from £36 million to £52 million.
He recommended that the prime minister of the foreign secretary "sit down quietly with the American ambassador, who owes five million of those pounds, and explain that this is a legitimate charge".
Earl Atlee called the matter "a long-running problem."
"The government of the United States should pay these congestion charges and parking charges," he told the House.
"It doesn’t matter how far out these charges go, they are due."
Shadow transport minister Lord Davies of Oldham called it an "abuse of our hospitality".
He recommended that the British government should not pay any of its charges oversees until the sum owed to London is collected.
Lord Tebbit (Con) suggested ministers "experiment with wheel clamping the cars of particular embassies".
"While we are at it, we could try wheel clamping one or two Lib Dem members from this House," he added.
Earl Atlee observed that that diplomatic vehicles are protected by the Vienna convention on diplomatic rights.
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