Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LONDON HAS BECOME the world’s largest pollution charging area after the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) was expanded to include the whole of the capital.
People who drive in the zone in a vehicle which does not meet minimum emissions standards are now required to pay a £12.50 (€14.58) daily fee or risk a £180 (€210) fine, reduced to £90 (€105) if paid within 14 days.
London mayor Sadiq Khan has faced strong opposition to the scheme, although a £160 million (€186.6 million) scheme run by Transport for London (TfL) enables residents, small businesses, sole traders and charities scrapping non-compliant cars to claim grants.
There have been regular protests against the plan and anti-Ulez vigilantes have repeatedly targeted enforcement cameras installed in the new areas in recent months.
Videos have been posted online showing people described as Blade Runners cutting the cameras’ wires or completely removing the devices.
The Metropolitan Police said it had recorded 288 crimes relating to the cameras as of 1 August.
Ulez expansion has become a political issue, being blamed for Labour’s failure to win last month’s Uxbridge and South Ruislip parliamentary by-election.
In an interview with the PA news agency, the Labour mayor said: “The vast majority of Londoners want to see clean air and I recognise there are some Londoners with genuine concerns.
“My job is to try and address those concerns and I have been doing that.”
Khan said he was “disappointed” at the lack of government support for the policy and its accompanying scrappage scheme.
He expressed frustration that the scrappage programme has no government funding, unlike those run in several other English cities.
He said: “It was this government that gave financial support to cities like Bristol, Birmingham and Portsmouth towards their clean air zones.
“If clean air is right for them then why isn’t clean air right for London?”
A government spokeswoman said: “Both transport and air quality are devolved to London, which is why they are the direct responsibility of the Mayor of London.
“In fact, the government has provided TfL £6 billion since 2020 to keep public transport moving and almost £102 million for projects specifically targeted to help tackle air pollution.”
To comply with Ulez standards, petrol cars must generally have been first registered after 2005, while most diesel cars registered after September 2015 are also exempt from the charge.
TfL says nine out of 10 cars seen driving in outer London on an average day are compliant.
Separate figures obtained by the RAC show more than 690,000 licensed cars in the whole of London are likely to be non-compliant.
This does not take into account other types of vehicles or those which enter London from neighbouring counties.
Some opponents of Ulez expansion claim the policy is aimed at generating money for TfL and criticised the mayor for introducing it during the cost of living crisis.
But Khan told PA: “It’s really heartbreaking when you get an in-patients ward and see the consequences of air pollution, but also it is inspiring to see that some of these policies can transform people’s lives.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
The producers are bluffing the EU, Ireland is doing it right. Aldi and Lidl do this here too – you can see exactly where the fish was caught, how it was caught and even the scientific name of the kind of fish. It obviously doesn’t cost Aldi and Lidl huge amounts to respect customers enough to supply information.
New law! How about enforcing the old laws that would be a start.
Closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.
This is why intelligent humans choose vegetarianism.
@Tommy_Bannon: Closing the stable door after the horse was eaten , to be more precise
Don’t forget there are plenty of intelligent people who eat meat too.
If you want to be healthy try cutting animal products from your diet. Processed meat that comes in a packet can’t be good for you. Either can milk from another animal that full of hormones and puss..
European milk does not contain hormones or ‘puss’. Every delivery from every farm is checked for temperature, antibiotics, bacteria etc. So stop spreading downright lies about the food we produce.
@Mick: of course there’s hormones in milk. You do realise dairy cows are constantly impregnated to produce milk. Cows like women are full of hormones while pregnant and those naturally produced hormones go into their milk to help bulk up calves. Its not intended for human consumption.. If you’re happy drinking and eating another animals milk go ahead.. Each to their own i suppose
I’m a dairy farmer myself. I understand completely the process works. What you are implying is false though. Natural, grass fed milk contains nothing untoward, we’ve been drinking milk for thousands of years. It’s when people start adding sugar and salt, E numbers and artificial chemical additives is when the trouble starts.
@Mick: Mick im not implying anything false. Cows milk is full of hormones, hormones that nature intends to help calves bulk up hundreds of pounds. It is not intended for children or adults to consume.
The natural hormones in milk are not in unusual quantities to cause any harm in humans. The levels of protein, butterfat etc in the 6L+ of milk that a calf consumes are responsible for growth. Generations of Irish people have eaten beef, dairy, eggs etc without issue. Obesity has only become an issue in this country since the 70′s, due to the advent of cheap, highly processed foods, the likes of coca cola with 30g+ of sugar per serving.
@Cosmo Kramer: backtrack much?
What about products labelled as Irish but brought down from the Uk?
No mention of take always etc imposing their religious beliefs on you, if you buy a ham pizza at many hundred placed you may be served dyed turkey NOT ham because these people don’t have any respect for you, nor your freedom to eat what you choose. It is often written on menu boards but often it won’t; it is dishonest but not illegal make sure your ham is not turkey meat dyed pink a common practice these days but The EU respect our rights on these issues.
Any particular reason a Lidl own-brand product was chosen to illustrate the story? Is there something we should be told?
Anybody .anywhere.here or abroad held accountable for putting shit into our food in the form of un regulated horse meat?anyone..
have your say