Starmer says local councils to impose LTNs under Labour government
Local councils will continue being able to impose low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) under a Labour Government, Sir Keir Starmer has said.
He said it would be for "local authorities to decide" where LTNs are put in place, saying they are a "good idea" in some areas.
Asked whether he would block the creation of new LTNs if elected, the Labour leader said: "I think this is very much a matter for local people in their area to decide, according to their local council.
“So I don’t think the Government should be dictating what happens; it’s for local authorities to decide according to their local population.
Asked if he thinks LTNs are a good thing, Starmer said: "Outside a school, do I think it’s a good idea to have low traffic? Yes, I do."
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Asked if he thinks LTNs are a good thing, Starmer said: "Outside a school, do I think it’s a good idea to have low traffic? Yes, I do.
“And I doubt that there’s a parent across the country that would say they want to get rid of low traffic outside of schools.
"It’s been in place for a very, very long time.
“When we were taking our children to primary school, I was very pleased to know that it was a low-traffic area.
"I would be very surprised if there’s a parent that says please can we have some fast cars going past our primary school."
Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh today said Labour is "the only party truly on the side of drivers" on a visit to a training college for vehicle maintenance in Grimsby alongside Starmer.
Labour has promised to repair an additional one million potholes each year if they are elected, as well as putting in palce a crackdown on car insurance costs.
Starmer also denied that 20mph zones shold be imposed by central government. Asked whether the zones should be implemented in England, as they have been in Wales under the Labour government, Starmer said: "I don’t think they should be mandated by the central government.
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"I don’t think the central government should be getting involved.
"I think it’s a matter for local authorities, local elected individuals to decide if they want them and if so, where they want them."