Protection of Freedoms Bill

I have been in touch with colleagues across Departments about powers of entry because they are found in all sorts of places. All Departments will be required to review powers of entry, and duplication will be exactly the sort of issue we will be looking at. We know that powers of entry are of great concern to the public, and another issue of great concern is wheel-clamping. The Bill will protect motorists from cowboy clampers, making it a criminal offence to immobilise, move or restrict the movement of a vehicle without lawful authority. For too long, motorists have fallen victim to extortion and abuse from rogue clamping companies. We have heard stories of drivers being frogmarched to cash points late at night or left stranded by rogue operators who have towed their vehicle away. Clearly that is unacceptable.