Sadiq Khan
(Picture: Getty Images)Sadiq Khan’s plan to expand the ultra-low emission zone across Greater London came under fire on Wednesday in a joint attack from a Labour MP and a Tory MP.
Jon Cruddas and Matthew Offord, who each represent suburban constituencies, joined forces to call on the mayor to have a year-long “no charge” period if he decides to widen the Ulez across all 33 boroughs from next August.
It came as Transport for London revealed there had been 58,000 responses to its official consultation on expanding the zone - including many submissions from campaigners either for or against.
Alex Williams, TfL’s director of city planning, told the TfL board on Wednesday that the key issues to emerge from the consultation responses were the need for a scrappage scheme to help Londoners on low incomes switch to a cleaner vehicle, and financial support for disabled Londoners.
Referring to the huge response to the counsultation, which ended in July, Mr Williams said: “When you delve into it, it’s quite clear there has been a lot of campaign activity.”
The consultation results are due to be delivered to Mr Khan in the next month.
The MPs said a 12-month charging amnesty would create “breathing room” for small businesses. At present, one in six vans circulating within the zone fail the exhaust emission rules, meaning they have to pay the £12.50-a-day levy.
Mr Khan formally announced plans to expand the Ulez to the Greater London boundary in March. His 2021 mayoral manifesto had pledged to expand it from central London to the inner boundary of the North and South Circular Roads – which happened last October – but did not mention a Londonwide scheme.
Mr Offord, Conservative MP for Hendon, and Mr Cruddas, Labour MP for Dagenham and Rainham, asked Mr Khan to consider a call from the Federation for Small Businesses for a “no charge” period for the first year of the so-called “GL-Ulez”.
In a letter to the mayor, they said two years’ notice was given before the Ulez was introduced in central London in 2019, with a gap of more than four years before the North/South Circular extension – but only over a year for the GL-Ulez.
They wrote: “Furthermore, the timing could not be worst with a cost of doing business crisis facing many micro and small businesses.
“Small businesses in our joint constituencies of Hendon and Dagenham and Rainham recognise the need for change, but the current proposal adds extra costs and extra administration without creating sustainability, adding value, or creating an opportunity to prosper.
“The FSB survey also showed that, for those businesses whose vehicle(s) do not comply, 25 per cent intend to pass charges on to customers, which will create further inflationary pressures; and 18 per cent said they would close their business.”
They called for an “even greater” van scrappage scheme than the oversubscribed £23m fund available for the North/South Circular extension.
Mr Khan is seeking Government help to fund a scrappage scheme for low-income Londoners and small businesses but no details have been announced.
He is due to decide by the end of the year whether to press ahead with the GL-Ulez. A poll commissioned by City Hall and published this week found 51 per cent supported widening the Ulez across Greater London, with 27 per cent opposed.
This contrasted with a reported majority of up to two-thirds of respondents to TfL’s official consultation being opposed.
Mr Khan said last week that the consultation was “not a numbers game” and that a “crude majority” in opposition would not automatically lead to the proposed expansion, which is designed to tackle toxic air, being axed.
A spokesperson for the Mayor said: “Air pollution is a matter of life and death. Around 4,000 Londoners die every year as a direct result of toxic air, and the majority of these deaths are in outer London.
“Four million Londoners are now breathing cleaner air thanks to the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) last autumn. And an estimated five million more Londoners living in outer London are expected to benefit if the ULEZ is expanded London-wide.
“The Mayor has consulted on expanding the ULEZ London-wide to protect the health of Londoners and save lives. Independent consultation analysis is ongoing and a full consultation report will be published in due course. Before making a decision, the Mayor will ensure that the views of all Londoners are taken into account.”
