Jabba, you are going to love this:

[jon_s]

DRIVERS with gas-guzzling motors face forking out £1,000 for road tax under shock new proposals.

Ministers are considering the move to encourage motorists to buy environmentally-friendly cars.

The £1,000 bill would apply to a range of models with high CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions.

They include a £14,100 Ford Mondeo 2 litre 16 valve, a £14,000 Vauxhall Vectra 1.8 litre 16 valve and a £16,300 Rover 75 1.8 T club.

The current top rate of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) is just £165. But it would soar by more than 500 per cent in a new sliding scale of tax charges.

Transport Secretary Alistair Darling ordered a study into the tax banding system — known as graduated VED.

MORI researchers discovered that the current system failed to influence people to buy cleaner cars.

They found drivers chose a model based on price, reliability, image, brand loyalty, colour and size — but very rarely CO2 emission levels.

They concluded: “Key players in the industry, as well as drivers, feel that for these initiatives to be taken up they need to hit people in the pocket.”

The report proposed doubling the price between bands or increasing the largest band to £1,000.

The prospect sparked outrage among motoring groups last night.

Paul Watters, of the AA, raged: “It’s ludicrous. Motorists will be furious.”


Targeted ... Ford Mondeo

Edmund King, of the RAC Foundation, said: “This would be a draconian increase and a double whammy on people with big cars. They already pay more at the pumps.”

Shadow Transport Secretary Damian Green warned: “Much higher road tax is on the Government’s agenda as the next phase in the war on motorists.”

Currently the yearly road tax for cars registered before March 1 2001 is £165 if they are over 1549cc and £110 if they are 1549cc or below.

VED for cars registered on or after March 1 2001 ranges from £165 down to just £55 based on CO2 emission levels.

Researchers stated: “Overall, the graduated VED scheme has had minimal impact on the UK car industry.”But they said cleaner motors were chosen for company cars when it was realised they could save on tax.

They suggested CO2 could also be cut by hammering high mileage drivers. Car tax could be incorporated into petrol prices so those who do many miles pay more.

Older cars, which tend to be less clean, could also be driven off the road by making the MOT tougher. But the report warned this could lead to more cars being dumped.