THE National Security Council (NSC), in responding to a proposal from Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) for a new regime for issuing dealer and demonstration licence plates, which it says are now being unlawfully used to regularly operate vehicles on public roadways without permanent registration and vehicle identification, has directed that the current plates be discontinued and a new form of temporary vehicle identification be considered for the specific purposes of demonstration or dealer transit.

According to the TAJ, the current regime “facilitates scammers and other criminals in the commission of crimes and provides an avenue to evade taxes”.

On Sunday, the Ministry of National Security, in issuing a statement about the development, said the recommendation is that the new system be electronically enabled to link the plate with the specific vehicle to which it will be temporarily assigned and the identification plate itself be Global Positioning System (GPS)- and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)-enabled.

“This will ensure control of the plates issued and enable the police to immediately verify the dealer to whom the identification plate was issued, the particulars of the vehicle assigned to it, and the location of the plate should it be suspected of involvement in an incident,” the ministry outlined.

It said the new system will network the TAJ, the Island Traffic Authority, the Jamaica Constabulary Force, and the Jamaica Customs Agency, allowing for easier cross-verification.

Last September, Transport Minister Daryl Vaz, in announcing that changes were being contemplated, declared that the current arrangement has become a matter of national security, made moreso by the fact that the TAJ does not have an accurate count of the demonstration plates in circulation at the time.

“This gap in oversight has presented opportunities for cloning and unauthorised use by criminal elements. As a result, the Government is losing revenue, and the lack of control over this system poses a serious threat to public safety and national security,” Vaz stressed then.

He further disclosed that it would cost an estimated $10 million for the design and implementation of the management system, the total recall of the existing plates for which a deadline will be issued, submission of the legislative changes, and finalising the new fee structure.

Demonstration plates are popularly referred to as blue plates. They come with the designation DC for cars and DT for trucks. Issued by TAJ, they should only be affixed to motor vehicles with insurance coverage, but this is reportedly often not the case as cited by individuals involved in motor vehicle crashes with vehicles with the plates affixed.

Some people are also known to have the plates affixed to the same vehicle for months at a time.