NSC clamps down on blue plates abuse

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.