• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

MayorWatch

London News and Comment

  • NEWS
  • Twitter

Boris lauds LEZ just days after blaming it on Europe

April 14, 2011 - Martin Hoscik@MayorWatch

The Mayor is calling for tougher vehicle emissions standards
Just days after his campaign team portrayed the Low Emission Zone as an EU-imposed scheme levying “EU fines” on the capital, Boris Johnson says he’s “committed” to the scheme and other measures to improve air quality.

The remarks come in a City Hall statement in which the Mayor calls on the European Commission to introduce regulations “for tyre and brake wear” which the administration claims “will soon be responsible for more PM10 emissions in central London than vehicle exhausts.”

The statement also reveals that EC Vice President Siim Kallas, visiting the capital today, will “be asked by the Mayor’s team to consider looking at tighter emissions limits for member states”.

Echoing the Mayor’s past assertions that some pollution affecting the capital is being carried by winds from Europe, the Johnson administration is calling for action “to try and reduce levels of trans-boundary pollution.”

Johnson said: “Our Low Emission Zone, the largest in Europe, robust measures to clean up buses and taxis and a commitment to increasing cycling and electric vehicles are well documented.

“However we will also firmly but politely point out that our friends in Brussels could greatly assist us in improving the air quality of London by tightening up the limits of emissions of the member states.”

The Mayor wants the EC to reconsider standards for NO2 pollution from road vehicles which he says “are not tight enough and are a factor behind the breaking of NO2 limits in nearly every major city in Europe.”

The LEZ is operated by Transport for London and no funds raised by it are transferred outside of TfL.

Despite this, the Mayor’s campaign last week said the third phase was being “imposed” on the capital “by Europe” and claimed Johnson was helping drivers “beat new EU fees” with his recently announced deal for discounts on new vans and minibuses.

The comments were made in a newsletter from the Mayor’s re-election campaign which also told supporters he had “succeeded in delaying the new fees by two years during the worst years of the recession but they are now being imposed by the EU.”

In fact the Mayor announced in October 2009 that the third phase, which covers to vans and minibuses, would come into effect from 2012 and not 2010 as originally planned by TfL.

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

RECENT UPDATES

852 new homes to be built in Acton by Transport for London

HGV operators in London urged to apply for a Direct Vision Standard permit

TfL proposes bus and tube cuts and annual fares increases to achieve long-term financial sustainability

London’s entire bus fleet now meets ULEZ emissions standards




Popular

1,700 extra Santander Cycles are coming to London’s streets

TfL confirms changes to Older Person’s Freedom Pass and 60+ Oyster card hours

TfL fares to rise in return for £1.6bn Government rescue package

Election for Mayor of London and London Assembly postponed until 2021

FEATURED

City Hall to move to Docklands as Mayor seeks to raise £55m for frontline services

‘Concern’ over TfL’s ability to deliver major projects in wake of Crossrail cost overruns

City Hall halts London Overground ticket office closures but many will still see opening hours reduced

Transport for London confirms bus cuts will go ahead despite passenger opposition

GOT A STORY?

As the original London news and scrutiny site we've been casting an eye over the capital's public services and politicians since 1999.

 

Many of our top stories started with a tip-off from a reader - if you've got something you'd like us to cover get in touch and we'll do the rest.

Stay In Touch

  • E-mail
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2021 MayorWatch Publications Limited · MayorWatch is Registered Trademark · All Rights Reserved · Contact Us · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy

MayorWatch Publications Limited · 20-22 Wenlock Road · London N1 7GU · Company Number 6291816

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.