London Mayor Sadiq Khan faces legal battle to prove his ULEZ plans are lawful
Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was still determined to clean up London's dirty air - as our Political Correspondent Simon Harris reports
London Mayor Sadiq Khan is facing a High Court battle to prove his ULEZ plans are lawful.
A judge has agreed to hear a challenge by four London boroughs. The mayor wants to extend the ULEZ zone to all of Greater London in August.
Drivers of older cars which fail to meet modern emissions standards would face a daily £12.50 toll.
The court’s decision is an embarrassing setback for the mayor's flagship scheme to improve air quality.
He claims scientific research shows an estimated 4,000 Londoners died prematurely every year because of toxic air.
A spokesperson for the mayor said: "The Mayor is pleased to see the court has refused permission for the majority of the grounds. We will continue to robustly defend his life-saving decision to expand the ULEZ and continue with preparations without delay.
"It is a shame that some local authorities have chosen to attempt this costly and misguided legal challenge instead of focusing on the health of those they represent.
"Around 4,000 Londoners die prematurely every year due to air pollution.
"This is a health emergency and the Mayor is not prepared to stand by and do nothing while Londoners are growing up with stunted lungs and are more at risk of heart disease, cancer and dementia due to our toxic air."
Nick Rogers AM, City Hall Conservatives transport spokesperson, added: "The High Court has now ruled there is sufficient evidence that Sadiq Khan's ULEZ decision may have been unlawful.
"The Mayor clearly does not have the legal grounds to proceed with his ULEZ tax plans, which take money from charities, small businesses and low income Londoners who cannot afford a new car.
"Sadiq Khan should do the right thing, immediately stop work on his ULEZ expansion, and explain his actions to the court."
In March newly installed cameras to police the expanded Ultra Low Emission Zone were vandalised.
The attack was on three cameras mounted above traffic lights at Knee Hill, Abbey Wood in south London.
A cable at the back of the cameras was cut and other attacks have seen cameras sprayed with paint.
More than 2,700 ULEZ cameras are being installed in outer London boroughs ahead of the scheme's August launch.
Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member and Deputy Chair of the Transport Committee Caroline Pidgeon AM said: "We all agree tackling air pollution is one of the most important issues for Londoners. Poor air quality is literally costing lives.
"However, any expansion of ULEZ should come with investment in public transport to offset the costs for communities in outer London.
"So far we’ve failed to see any such commitment from this Labour Mayor. Instead, we have had PR exercises such as ‘Superloop’ which primarily consisted of rebranded existing routes and hopeful future ones, rather than genuinely expanding public transport options.
"The Mayor should have backed our budget amendment which doubled the scrappage fund, opening it up to everyone, alongside more buses, to mitigate the ULEZ expansion.”
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