London mayoral election: Susan Hall vows to scrap Ulez expansion

Conservative Susan Hall has launched her mayoral election campaign with a promise to "listen to Londoners".

On Sunday in Uxbridge, the Tory hopeful accused London Mayor Sadiq Khan of having "ignored" voters in the capital.

She said she would focus on what she described as the "unfair" expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez).

In response, incumbent London Mayor Sadiq Khan warned a Conservative mayor would "cancel" his policies.

The mayoral election on 2 May will use the first-past-the-post system, rather than the former Supplementary Vote system.

Mr Khan is currently seeking an unprecedented third term in office and launched his election campaign last week with a pledge to build 40,000 new council homes by the end of the decade.

Recent polling by Savanta suggests Ms Hall is languishing behind Mr Khan by about 26 points, despite the public being split on the mayor's record in office.

The poll showed 51% of voters saying they would back Mr Khan against 27% who said they would vote for Ms Hall, with younger voters and those who are Asian or black overwhelmingly backing the mayor.

Ms Hall's key pledges include scrapping the expansion of the Ulez scheme on her first day in office and reopening the London Plan in an attempt to boost housebuilding.

The London Plan is also in Mr Khan's development strategy.

She would also encourage the removal of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs), and "remove unnecessary 20mph zones on main TfL-controlled roads".

Speaking on the day of her campaign launch, Ms Hall said: "Sadiq Khan has ignored Londoners for eight years. If he wins a third term, that would be giving him permission to ignore us again.

"Crime has spiralled out of control after he shut police stations and failed to recruit police, rents have spiked because he has not built the affordable family homes Londoners deserve, and he has imposed his unfair Ulez expansion tax, hitting the lowest earners the hardest.

"I am listening to Londoners. My priorities are Londoners' priorities and as mayor I will recruit more police, build more affordable homes and scrap the Ulez expansion on day one."

Speaking in central London earlier on Monday, Mr Khan branded the May election as a "clear two-horse race" between himself and the Conservative candidate.

He claimed Ms Hall would "cancel" several of his flagship policies including TfL fare freezes, free school meals, action on cleaner air and progress on police reform.

The mayor said: "The choice on 2 May is quite clear: Me, who's been delivering a fairer, safer, greener, more affordable London, or the Tories who would cancel that."

Mr Khan emphasised the possibility of "real transformation" for the capital if he was re-elected alongside a Labour government.

He added: "There's a possibility of a Labour mayor and a Labour government working together, rather than rowing against the tide of a Tory government.

"We'd have the winds of a Labour government at our back, bringing about real transformation in London."

Ms Hall's campaign spokesman said Mr Khan's comments were a "complete distortion of the truth".

Mr Khan has promised not to expand the Ulez scheme further if he returns to the role after May's election.

The zone was widened last August to cover the whole of Greater London, a controversial move overseen by the London mayor.

On the same day as Ms Hall's campaign launch, Mr Khan ruled out increasing the charge if he was re-elected and said there would be no changes to vehicle restrictions.

Meanwhile on Monday, Age UK held a hustings, campaigning for older Londoners' interests ahead of the election.

The only candidate who turned up was the Green Party's Zoe Garbett with the rest of the main party candidates sending stand-ins.

Correction 18th April: This article's headline originally said that "Susan Hall vows to end Ulez" and has been amended to make clear that Susan Hall only intends to scrap the August 2023 extension to Ulez, not the scheme in its entirety.

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