A RADICAL new vehicle number plate system which will be introduced on September 1, 2001 has been unveiled by the Government. The new system is claimed to be 'easier to read and memorise' with number plates composed of a two-letter regional identifier and a two-number age identifier followed by a space and three randomly selected letters.

To establish the regional section the UK has been divided into 19 regions (A = Anglia) with each DVLA office in each region taking a letter within a range (Peterborough = A-N). The age identifier will change in March and September (September 2001 = 01, March 2002 - 02, September 2002 = 52, March 2003 = 03, September 2003 = 53) The new system will not apply in Northern Ireland. The launch of the new system will also see a standard typeface introduced from March 1, 2001 and character size - thereby banning the use of aftermarket plates with 'fancy' typefaces which cannot be read by enforcement cameras.