The Plant Theft Action Group plans for most machines in the UK to be registered by 2010 in order to combat theft.

All plant could be registered by 2010 if a plan put forward by the Plant Theft Action Group (PTAG) is accepted by the Home Office, which is likely. The Home Office and police are increasingly concerned about the theft of Plant machinery in the build up to the 2012 Olympic Games in Britain.

Machines used on sites connected with the Olympic Games will have to be registered with a central database and carry stickers showing their identity number. Police will then be able to quickly search for a complete record of the machines details, 24 hours a day. People can also check with the directory that they are not buying stolen goods.

It is hoped that the scheme is widely adopted and a specialist Police plant theft unit is to be set up to target organised crim View the rest of this article