MP's move to reverse London Ulez expansion runs out of Commons time

A Conservative MP has failed in his bid reverse London mayor Sadiq Khan's expansion of London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez).

The government indicated it would get behind Dartford MP Gareth Johnson's Private Members Bill.

But it ran out of Parliamentary time after Labour MPs kept the debate going.

A central London Ulez, introduced in 2019 and designed to tackle air pollution, was extended to cover the whole of Greater London in August 2023.

Under Commons rules, Mr Johnson's bill now stands almost no chance of being becoming law unless it is adopted by the government.

But any legislation would have to be passed before a general election, expected later this year, and it is unlikely to be allocated enough Parliamentary time.

Intervening during a 33-minute speech by Labour MP Lilian Greenwood. Mr Johnson said: "It's obvious both she and the Labour Party wish to talk out my Bill."

A £12.50 daily charge applies to driving in the zone if a vehicle does not meet emission standards.

Drivers of buses, coaches and heavy goods vehicles that do not meet an emissions standard have to pay £100 per day if they enter the separate Low Emission Zone, which covers the same area as Ulez.

Downing Street denied "riding roughshod" over devolution by backing the bill, saying it was "about making sure that communities and drivers are able to have their say on important issues".

"The government has been consistent in supporting motorists and it's in line with that," a No 10 spokesperson said.

Ulez has proved particularly controversial in outer London boroughs, and was seen as a key factor in the Conservatives holding on to the parliamentary seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip in a by-election in July 2023.

Following that result, Sir Keir Starmer asked Mr Khan to reflect on the policy's impact. But appearing alongside him this week, the Labour leader said he did not want his children to "breathe in dirty air".

Opponents of Ulez, including the Conservatives, have described it as an unfair tax on motorists, with many small traders saying they can not afford the extra costs incurred.

The mayor has argued it is needed to protect people's health by tackling toxic levels of air pollution.

He has cited his legal duty to take measures to meet air quality targets set by the government, and pointed out that his predecessor as mayor, Boris Johnson, announced plans in 2015 to introduce a similar zone.

In a report earlier this month. he claimed that since he was first elected in 2016, air quality had improved faster in London than the rest of the country, with Ulez a major factor.

Mr Khan said nitrogen dioxide pollution had been cut in half to the lowest annual level on record.

The Conservatives claimed he was hiding figures likely to show Ulez expansion had had only a negligible impact.

During the debate on his bill, Mr Johnson described the UIez charge as a "cruel tax" on London's poorest people, who could not afford to upgrade their cars.

It was also unfair, he said, on businesses in outer London and neighbouring counties, and on people who lived near Greater London as they had "no say on who the London mayor is", adding "the border between London and the home counties is not neat."

The Dartford MP argued it was a "myth" to say the expansion was about improving air quality. He said the mayor did not want to ban polluting vehicles, "he wants to make money out of them".

Nottingham South MP Ms Greenwood accused the Conservatives of using a serious public health issue "for purely party political point-scoring".

Another Labour MP. Stella Creasy, reminded the Commons that voters would soon "have an opportunity to express an opinion at the ballot box" on Ulez expansion, on 2 May.

She suggested the bill indicated Conservative MPs had "no confidence in their mayoral candidate being able to win that argument".

Transport minister Guy Opperman confirmed the government supported the bill.

After five Tory-led councils mounted a legal challenge to the expansion plan, the High Court ruled it was lawful last July.

The mayor said 95% of vehicles seen driving in London on an average day now met clean air standards, thanks tohis £160m scrappage scheme.

Mr Khan has urged the government to fund a national scrappage scheme to cover the wider south-east.

There are 12 candidates for the London mayoral elections on 2 May.

They are:

Shyam Batra, independent

Count Binface, independent

Rob Blackie, Liberal Democrats

Natalie Campbell, independent

Howard Cox, Reform UK

Amy Gallagher, SDP

Zoe Garbett, Green Party

Tarun Ghulati, independent

Susan Hall, Conservative Party

Sadiq Khan, Labour Party

Andreas Michli, independent

Brian Rose, London Real