Tomorrow’s budget could include a car scrappage scheme that ministers hope will kick-start the country’s motor industry. Old banger driver Joe Willis reports.

AS the driver of a 13-year-old Citroen AX bought from a friend for £75, the prospect of being handed £2,000 towards a shiny new replacement has its appeal.

But is it that simple? And will it work?

The idea, like many of life’s more civilised concepts, is big across the Channel. According to the AA, Britain and Poland are the only two major European countries yet to introduce such a scheme.

It is thought that the Government could base its proposals on the German model. To qualify, vehicles would need to be a certain age – perhaps nine or ten-year-old – and have been in the owner’s possession for a specified minimum period, possibly six months.

It is likely that the car would need to have been taxed and tested for the previous 12 months. It is hoped this would stop people trying to claim the incentive by dragging rusting old MOT failures out of barns, as has happened in some countries.

In return for handing over their banger, the motorist would get a discount on a new or second- hand car of less than a certain age – which some dealers suggest should be four years, although is more likely to be a year.

The figure of £2,000 has been widely quoted as the incentive, but it could well be a sliding scale depending on the cost of the new car.

It is also likely that the scheme would have an environmental aspect.

The RAC is one of several motoring organisations that have urged the Government to ensure the scheme is as much about getting old, high-polluting cars off the roads as it is about increasing car sales.

This could mean only drivers buying a small low-emission vehicle would qualify. In France for example, a scrappage discount is only offered on cars with a CO2 emission of 160g per km or less.

The RAC yesterday suggested the figure should be set at 130g per km.

However, some environmentalists are still sceptical, arguing that the greenest option is for consumers to carry on driving their old cars, as manufacturing new ones involves large amounts of carbon emission.

It is expected that the scrappage offer would be limited to a set period of maybe a year. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, which has expressed support for the idea, has estimated that it would cost the Government £560m.

The aim of the scheme is to give the motor industry a massive sales push.

AA president Edmund King said: “A cash incentive to get the older gross-polluter cars off the road to be replaced by cleaner, greener, safer models would be a boost to sales, the environment and road safety.

“A scrappage scheme would bring back some consumer confidence to the market, particularly if linked to more viable loan schemes.”

The call for a British scrappage scheme has been led by the UK Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

The society has had to announce months of gloomy new-car sales and production figures, with even the arrival of the new 09 number plate last month failing to ignite a stalled market.

Car companies have cut jobs and production and temporarily shut down plants as demand has plummeted.

If the experiences of other countries are anything to go by, the initiative could lead to a deluge of people being tempted by the shiny forecourt offerings. The German scheme has seen a 40 per cent monthly rise and attracted more than half a million buyers.

While 28 per cent of more than 17,000 UK drivers asked in a poll by AA/Populus said they would consider taking advantage of a Government incentive scheme to scrap older cars if one was available.

With the majority of cars on the country’s roads being made abroad, some have questioned the benefit to the British motor industry.

But while supporters admit that many vehicles are imported, they say that often the parts are made in the UK. For example, 75 per cent of the engines in the country’s best selling car, the Ford Fiesta, are made at Ford’s Dagenham and Bridgend plants.

In the North-East, it appears that the announcement of a scrappage scheme in tomorrow’s Budget would be warmly welcomed.

Nas Khan is managing director of North- East dealership Jennings Motor Group.

He has written to local MPs requesting that they lobby Parliament on the issue on behalf of dealers.

He said: “The implementation of such a scheme will not only benefit the industry as a whole, but also local dealers.”

Alasdair MacConachie, managing director of Sherwoods car dealership, in Darlington, said he was “very keen” on the scheme.

“I think it’s an excellent idea,” he said.

“It will get rid of the old cars on the road, which are a potential hazard.

“It will depend on what parameters the Government includes, but if it works in Germany, I can see no reason why it doesn’t work here.”

The scheme has been welcomed by bosses at the Nissan plant at Sunderland, which last year was forced to announce 1,200 redundancies because of the downturn.

A spokeswoman said: “It’s already been a success in Germany and France and could be a welcome shot in the arm to the motor industry over here.”

Last week, Darlington-based Northgate Vehicle Hire also spoke out in support of the plan.

Of course, drivers of old bangers will still need to find the rest of the money to buy their new motor.

Job losses, wage freezes, low interest rates on savings and difficulties obtaining credit are just four of the reasons why for many, myself included, £2,000 may still not be enough.