The Daily Observer London Desk: Reporter- Kathryn Williams
Sadiq Khan was slapped down by the Government today after he urged Rishi Sunak to spend £110million on a scrappage scheme for home counties commuters ahead of his low emissions zone expansion.
The Mayor of London told the Prime Minister to fund a project for people who live in locations such as Surrey and Kent and need to drive into the capital to have their vehicles either scrapped or retrofitted.
The plea came following news that the Mayor plans to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to cover the whole of London from August 29 2023.
Mr Khan called on Mr Sunak to match the £110million he has allocated for the capital’s scrappage scheme, but a Government spokesman said that it was up to him to ‘justify his decision to expand the ULEZ’ and make sure it is ‘not just a tax on the poorest motorists’.
‘We have provided TfL (Transport for London) with £6 billion in funding support to keep public transport moving, as well as £2 billion towards vehicle grants and infrastructure to support the rollout of clean vehicles across the country,’ the spokesman added.
Sadiq Khan (pictured above) has urged the Prime Minister to match the £110 million he has allocated for London’s scrappage scheme
The Mayor of London has launched a new scrappage scheme providing financial assistance to help Londoners scrap their polluting vehicles to prepare for the expansion of the ULEZ across all London Boroughs
‘More specifically, London has received almost £102 million of Government funding for projects specifically targeted at helping to tackle pollution.’
The spokesman continued: ‘Decisions on how to allocate funding to best meet the city’s transport priorities are for the Mayor of London to make.’
Drivers will be slapped with a £12.50 daily fee for using vehicles inside the city that do not meet the minimum standards.
This has met fierce resistance from several councils, with five mounting a legal challenge partly based on the scrappage scheme.
In a letter, Mr Khan urged the Prime Minister to ‘become a doer, rather than a delayer, when it comes to climate action’.
He went on to explain that several areas introducing clean air zones have already received Government funding for scrapping non-compliant vehicles.
This includes areas such as:
- Manchester (£120 million)
- Bristol (£42 million)
- Birmingham (£38 million)
- Bradford (£30 million)
However, he noted that London and the home counties ‘have not received even a penny of support’.
The mayor wrote: ‘I urge you to use some of the unexpected £30 billion windfall in the public finances to not only match the funding allocated for scrappage in London, but to introduce a targeted scrappage scheme that provides help to those based in the home counties.’
He went on to add: ‘London, the South East and the East of England make net contributions to the Treasury every year, and Londoners pay £500 million of vehicle excise yearly, which is then spent on maintaining roads in other parts of the country.
‘For our regions to pay in so much and not be helped to reduce carbon emissions and make our air safer to breathe is unfair and doesn’t make sense.’
For diesel cars and vans to avoid the ULEZ charge they must generally have been registered from September 2015.
Meanwhile, most petrol models that are registered after 2005 are exempt.
London’s scrappage scheme for vehicles that do not comply with the emissions standards includes payments of up to £2,000 for eligible drivers – such as those on low incomes or the disabled scrapping a car.
For diesel cars and vans to avoid the ULEZ charge they must generally have been registered from September 2015, while most petrol models that are registered after 2005 are exempt
Up to £9,500 is given for charities, sole traders and small businesses scrapping or retrofitting their vans or minibuses.
However, home counties residents are not eligible for the initiative.
Mr Khan wrote that London is ‘in the grip of a deadly public health crisis’, with toxic air ‘causing the premature deaths of an estimated 4,000 Londoners every year’.
He continued: ‘It is abundantly clear then that the cost of inaction is far too high and that further action is needed to safeguard public health and spare people unnecessary suffering.
‘I’m simply not prepared to stand idly by while toxic fumes from highly polluting vehicles choke our communities and leave our children reaching for inhalers and gasping for air.
‘That’s why I’ve chosen to expand the ultra low emission zone London-wide.’
A Government spokesperson said: ‘It’s for the Mayor of London to justify his decision to expand the Ulez, and to properly consult to ensure it is not just a tax on the poorest motorists. ‘Decisions on how to allocate funding to best meet the city’s transport priorities are for the Mayor of London to make.
‘We have provided TfL (Transport for London) with £6 billion in funding support to keep public transport moving, as well as £2 billion towards vehicle grants and infrastructure to support the rollout of clean vehicles across the country.
‘More specifically, London has received almost £102 million of Government funding for projects specifically targeted at helping to tackle pollution.’
