Contents
Report 10 of the 18 Apr 02 meeting of the Finance, Planning and Best Value Committee and discusses information on the proposed partnership with TfL and other agencies in regard to the recycling of fine income from driving offences captured by speed and traffic signal cameras.
Warning: This is archived material and may be out of date. The Metropolitan Police Authority has been replaced by the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPC).
See the MOPC website for further information.
The London Safety Camera Partnership
Report: 10
Date: 18 April 2002
By: Commissioner
Summary
This report provides information on the proposed partnership with TfL and other agencies in regard to the recycling of fine income from driving offences captured by speed and traffic signal cameras.
A. Recommendations
- Members are asked to note the contents of this report.
- A further report, together with the partnership agreement should be brought to the Finance, Planning and Best Value Committee at a future date for consideration.
B. Supporting information
Background
1. In December 1998, the then DETR, Home Office and Treasury agreed that fine income from speed and red light cameras could be used to fund additional camera enforcement. The main objective of the cost recovery scheme is to reduce the number of killed and seriously injured (KSI) as a result of road traffic accidents.
2. Eight geographical areas were selected to pilot the scheme and went live in April 2000. The pilot areas were considered to be successful in achieving the objectives and the DTLR now wish the scheme to be rolled out nationally over the next two years.
3. In order to be accepted onto the scheme each partnership has to submit an operational case to the DTLR for approval. Each bid is evaluated with the predicted reduction in the number of KSI casualties being a key factor for approval.
4. The proposal to enter into a partnership with a range of interested bodies in London to operate a scheme of speed camera enforcement was reported to the Authority in September 2001. This is not a new activity for the MPS but an existing operational function. The scheme will allow for the funding of our existing activity through fine income in addition to an extension of speed camera activity to reduce casualties, again funded by fine income.
The London Partnership
5. The London Safety Camera Partnership (LSCP) comprises eight partners:
- Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) with the approval of the MPA
- City of London Police Service (CoLP)
- Association of London Government (ALG)
- Greater London Magistrates Courts Authority (GLMCA)
- Transport for London (TfL)
- The Highways Agency (THA)
- Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)
- National Health Service (NHS)
6. TfL has been designated the Lead Authority for the partnership and will provide project management, treasury management and accounting functions.
7. TfL in conjunction with the other partners have prepared an operational case that has been submitted to the DTLR for approval. The operational case provides detail of what the partnership is going to do and an estimate of income and expenditure over a five-year period. Table 1 provides a summary of both total income and expenditure and the anticipated expenditure to be incurred by the MPS.
Table 1 – Projected Income and Expenditure
| Year 1 £m | Year 2 £m | Year 3 £m | Year 4 £m | Year 5 £m | Total £m | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Income | 7.83 | 9.06 | 9.69 | 10.20 | 9.40 | 46.18 |
| Expenditure: MPS | 3.73 | 3.74 | 3.56 | 3.45 | 3.34 | 17.82 |
| Expenditure: Total LSCP | 7.70 | 6.68 | 6.30 | 5.95 | 5.56 | 32.19 |
| Expenditure: Surplus LSCP | 0.13 | 2.38 | 3.39 | 4.25 | 3.84 | 13.99 |
Funding mechanism
8. It is proposed that TfL will act as a central banker on behalf of the partnership. The GLMCA will collect the fine revenue and transfer it to the Lord Chancellors Department, who in turn will pass funding based on the operational case to the DTLR. TfL will be funded by quarterly grant payment by the DTLR on the basis of the cashflow anticipated in the operational case. At each year-end, TfL will account to DTLR for grant received and actual expenditure. Any difference being refunded to or funded by the DTLR in the following financial year.
9. It is proposed that the MPS will submit monthly invoices to TfL for all actual costs incurred on the scheme. TfL will reimburse the MPS within 30 days of receipt of the invoice.
10. Regular monitoring will take place to ensure that there will not be a deficit at the end of the five-year operational case period. If at any point projected revenue does not cover expenditure the partnership will review the enforcement strategy and make any revisions necessary to bring the operational case back into balance.
11. In the unlikely event that there is a deficit at the end of the five-year period then it is proposed that it will be shared by each partner in line with the percentage of projected revenue expenditure incurred compared to projected total expenditure. In the case of the MPS the proposed percentage of any deficit is 61%.
12. The funding is ring-fenced and may only be used for expenditure as proposed within the operational case. The Treasury will retain any surplus at the end of the five-year period.
Current position
13. The operational case was submitted to the DTLR National Cost Recovery Steering Group in January for approval. In response the Steering Group requested the LSCP complete some additional speed survey analysis to comply with DTLR requirements. A supplementary paper sent to DTLR has addressed the additional compliance requirements. The partnership has now been given approval to recover all camera enforcement costs incurred as from 1 April 2002.
14. The scheme will be formally launched on a date to be announced.
Outstanding issues
15. The following issues need to be resolved/ clarified:
- Formal agreement by the MPA to participation in the partnership (the MPS Department of Procurement are advising upon the content of the partnership agreement).
- Any implications of TfL acting as procuring agents for the MPS in regard to our outsourced contracts in terms of equipment specification, provision and ongoing maintenance and support.
- Clarify there is no cash flow disadvantage to the MPS through the proposed invoice payment process (paid by TfL within 30 days of submission)
- Possible need to have more MPS representation on the national steering group and ACPO committee.
C. Financial implications
Although the projected expenditure for the MPS is £17.82 million over the five years the total projected surplus of the project is £14 million over the same period. This would suggest that the risk of the scheme failing to recover its costs is minimal, as projected income would have to fall by 30% before a deficit would be incurred, assuming expenditure remained as per the operational case.
The MPS will be able to claim reimbursement for all costs related to camera enforcement. Therefore, depending upon the income received, there will be an annual saving to the MPS of up to £2.8 million which represents existing costs incurred that will be reclaimable from TfL under this partnership scheme. In view of the challenging 2002/03 budget savings target for the MPS and the difficulty in obtaining the full year effect of the proposed savings, bridging any gap in the savings target could be a first call upon this additional income.
D. Background papers
- Operational Case & Supplementary Paper
- Letter of approval from DTLR
E. Contact details
Report author: Craig Watkins, Head of Business Support, Finance.
For information contact:
MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18
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