Mayor of London Sadiq Khan in Catford, south east London, on the first day of the expansion of the ultra-low emission zone to include the whole of London
The Mayor’s 2018 transport strategy had argued it may be necessary to introduce “disincentives” to phase out fossil fuel vehicles altogether, suggesting combustion-engined cars could “pay road user charges” for driving in certain areas. Speaking on GB News on Tuesday morning, Transport Secretary Mark Harper said he would stop the rollout if he had the power to do so and highlighted his reservations about the true motives behind the expansion.
Under the amendment, brought forward by Tory peer Lord Moylan, London boroughs would be able to opt out of future Transport for London clean air schemes if they are meeting air quality targets. “If this was about making money, I’d have acceded to the demand from the Government to expand the congestion charge much wider than it currently is. That would have been a cash grab, but I said no.“If it was a cash grab – as the Government is saying – just to raise money, I’d have acceded to their demand to expand the Ulez without proper consultation and a proper scrappage scheme.”