Tory London mayoral candidate vows to fight back against anti-car policies: ‘Ulez expansion gone on day one!’

The zone was significantly expanded on August 29, with all London boroughs now covered.

“I’d stop the Ulez expansion on day one. LTNs (Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods) are within the control of local councils but I would absolutely do everything I could to remove them”, Hall told Camilla Tominey.

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“Ulez was brought in for inner London, there’s buses everywhere and tube stations, those on the outskirts of London don’t have the same offer of public transport.

“That’s the difference and that’s what Sadiq Khan doesn’t understand.”

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Hall went on to comment on 20mph zones after a major expansion across London last week, dubbing them “ridiculous” in certain locations.

“I do wonder whether these are cash grabs as well”, she said.

“£200million has been put into the budget for how much they think they will make from the first year.

“This is nothing but a tax on the poorest of Londoners.”

Questioned by Camilla Tominey about Sadiq Khan’s suggestion that the measures have been put in place to combat pollution, Hall insists that his own impact assessment suggests it will make “no difference whatsoever”.

“The £2000 scrappage scheme doesn’t buy you a compliant car”, she said.

“He just doesn’t listen, he doesn’t understand, this is a tax on poorer Londoners.”

Using a non-compliant vehicle in Ulez comes with a £12.50 daily charge, and central Government have no plans to offer support to those affected.

Speaking to GB News in August, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said “it’s for Labour to explain” why they believe Ulez is the correct policy.

Separate figures obtained by the RAC show more than 690,000 licensed vehicles in the whole of London are likely to be non-compliant, but this does not include other types of vehicles or those which enter London from neighbouring areas.

A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: "The decision to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone London-wide was not an easy one, but necessary to tackle toxic air pollution and the climate crisis.

"Around 4,000 Londoners die prematurely each year due to toxic air. Children are growing up with stunted lungs and thousands of people in our city are developing life-changing illnesses, such as cancer, lung disease, dementia and asthma.

"The Ulez is a very targeted scheme. Nine out of ten cars seen driving in outer London on an average day are already Ulez compliant and their drivers will not have to pay the charge. For the small minority of drivers who currently do have to pay the charge, the Mayor expanded the £160 million scrappage scheme so that every Londoner with a non-compliant car is now eligible for a £2,000 grant to make the switch to a cleaner, less polluting one.

“Net proceeds from the Ulez are reinvested into enhancing public transport. This includes initiatives such as the Superloop express bus routes which will help to connect more people in outer London.

“Unlike other UK cities, the capital has not received a penny in funding from Government for a scrappage scheme. That is why the Mayor has written to the Government on numerous occasions to ask for a national scrappage scheme which could provide support to people who drive into London from the Home Counties and who need help scrapping more polluting vehicles."