Ulez: Retrospective scrappage payments voted down

A bid to allow Londoners to make retrospective Ulez scrappage applications has been voted down.

The capital's mayor expanded the scrappage payment scheme to all Londoners from 21 August, eight days prior to the expansion of the Ulez charging zone to include all of London.

The Lib Dems called for those who had already replaced non-compliant vehicles to be offered the financial assistance.

Their amendment was voted against at the London Assembly.

Labour and the Green Party voted against the bid, while Conservative assembly members abstained from the vote.

It comes as Transport for London said it had issued "thousands" of enforcement notices to drivers of non-compliant vehicles.

It said it had used "discretion" to warn drivers, and that the charge would need to be paid in the future if the vehicle continued to be used within the scheme.

A spokesperson added: "We are using the opportunity to remind drivers of the extensive support available such as scrappage grants, and to point people to our Auto Pay system, which is the easiest way to ensure they are not caught out unnecessarily."

On the scrappage scheme, the BBC has spoken to a number of people who say they had already replaced their older vehicles before the Ulez expanded, so they missed out on the financial assistance.

Drivers of vehicles with non-compliant emissions must pay a charge of £12.50 per day to drive anywhere in the zone under the controversial clean-air plan.

The £160m scrappage scheme is still available for all Londoners yet to replace vehicles to make a claim from going forward, with a maximum of £2,000 being offered per vehicle.

Rob Blackie, the Liberal Democrat candidate for the mayoral election next May, confirmed that if he was elected he would backdate the scrappage scheme payments for people who replaced their vehicle between January 2022 and August 2023.

He added that it was "unacceptable that people who wanted to make the right decision and switch to greener vehicles have been excluded from help".

During the debate, Conservative assembly member Keith Prince said that he "welcomed the amendment in some ways" as it was "outrageous" that the scrappage expansion was announced only weeks before the Ulez expansion.

Despite saying that the scrappage scheme "should be retrospective at the very least", the Conservatives told the BBC that party members had abstained from voting because the amendment criticised the judicial review that was launched earlier this year against the expansion.

The BBC has contacted Labour and the Green Party for comment.

A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: "There is still millions of pounds left in the scrappage scheme pot, so the mayor encourages all Londoners who are impacted by Ulez to apply today for the support we've made available."

Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]