Boris Johnson has been accused of undermining Government efforts to prove to the European Commission that it can meet legally binding targets to reduce air pollution.
The accusation has been made by Green Party Assembly Member Darren Johnson who said the Mayor’s plans to scrap the western extension of the congestion charge and suspend stage three of the Low Emission Zone damaged government calculations on the UK’s efforts to reduce emissions.
Mr Johnson claimed the Mayor’s decisions “have seriously messed up the Government’s strategy to avoid large fines from the European Commission.”
“The Mayor’s decisions to weaken both congestion charging and the Low Emission Zone have been the height of irresponsibility and an absolute disaster for London’s environment. No other proposals by either the mayor or the Government could deliver the same scale of reductions in emissions within the next year. Air pollution in the capital already results in over 1,000 premature deaths per year and there is emerging evidence that it is having a serious impact on the long-term development of children’s lungs.”
Mr Johnson’s claimed have been strongly denied by City Hall. A spokesperson for the Mayor of London told MayorWatch the Mayor “has met with the Government to discuss air quality and, far from scuppering their ability to meet the European target, he has laid out clear plans to reduce pollution in the capital.”
The spokesman added: “The first two phases of the Low Emission Zone have worked well and targeted the heaviest polluting vehicles. However phase three would clobber London’s small businesses, the backbone of the capital’s economy, with a bill that in the current economic climate could put many of them out of existence.
“The Mayor believes that a range of other measures will allow real progress to be made by 2012 in terms of cutting pollution and hitting air quality targets. At a recent meeting with with Lord Hunt to discuss air quality issues they agreed that the GLA and Defra will work on a package of measures, both national and regional, which will address PM10 emissions in London in order to meet EU targets. He has also written to Lord Mandelson, the Trade and Industry Secretary, with the aim of working with the Government on a subsidy scheme for replacing the oldest, most polluting light goods vehicles.
“This is all before consideration of the improvements to London’s air quality that will result from work taking place to re-phase the traffic signals, open bus lanes to motorbikes, working with utility companies to cut the chaos caused by their works, encouraging people out of their cars with vast improvements to the public transport network and the introduction of a cycle hire scheme with 6000 bikes by 2010.”
J H Holoway says
Ha!
What bloody cheek. Funny how all these environmental warriors weren’t jumping up and down when the Newt and TFL were ordering thousands of diesel buses – one of the primary causes of the NoX and soot pollution in the centre of London.
Oh, and the 21,000 black cabs described to me by the world’s leading expert on future engine design as ‘the dirtiest public transport in Europe’.
I also found out today that Australia runs all its public transport on clean-burning natural gas. Just like California, Toyko, Hong Kong…
Pity Boris won’t grab the nettle and force all cabs to be re-engined to LPG by 2012.
PS Any thoughts on the EU prosecution of Britain for not hitting the EU pollution targets set years ago? Labour government, wasn’t it?
Tom says
Hilton, is that you again? If so, your obsession with bus emissions has progressed to the stage where you can’t even spell your own name. I make no apologies for correcting this.
I can’t be bothered wasting Martin’s time and bandwidth pointing out in overmuch detail why he’s wrong*, but he is, because he can’t do his research properly. If you want to know, I’ll post it at Boriswatch. His latest attempt at a pseudonym needs pointing out anyway.
* Just for a start, Hong Kong buys Enviro500 diesel buses from Alexander Dennis Ltd. of Scotland, for instance, which are as clean or dirty (defined as meeting the Euro IV standard) as the smaller Enviro400 double deckers introduced in large numbers in London by TfL contractors since 2006. I’m not sure what Hilton is trying to do other than make himself a laughing stock.
thomasthetaxi says
Just Like to point out JH Holoway, you should really do some research before you jump on the environmental band wagon.
Although I was never a supporter of Ken one of the things he did do was to make sure the London taxi fleet had an engine and exhaust that was up to European standard 5 for emissions. Whereas the legal requirement is only Euro standard 3.
All the Taxi’s that could not achieve this standard, mainly older Fairways have now been taken off the road.
The 25,000 strong London Taxi fleet has the cleanest most environmentally friendly and efficient engines of any European country. Most other Europeans use the Mercedes, Peugeot and Fiat diesels which lag far behind the current stock in London cabs.
Also you have exaggerated the natural gas burners. Not all of California’s public service vehicles burn LPG and certainly not all there taxi fleets.
We had an experimental LPG engine in about a hundred cabs a few years back which proved very unsuccessful, with many drivers left heavily out of pocket and left High and dry by Ken.
The statistics for pollution levels in London are flawed as information is only gathered at known hot spots like the Marylebone Road and Cromwell road. Both known for many heavy lorry’s and mostly stationary traffic.
If the collection points were place in areas such as Park lane north bound, The Mall and Fulham Palace road by Findlay Street the results would show a different outcome altogether.
TawkinSenz says
This is case of classic spin politics which has blighted our political system for years now (and I don’t just mean since Nu Labour came to the table)
The Government has done next to nothing to resolve pollution issues, but they were happy to take credit for Ken’s work when it was looking good.
Now that they realise that not enough was done (and Ken himself would admit it was merely a start) – they want to blame Boris for their impending failure.
I don’t believe either Boris, nor the Government and possibly even the voters are serious about the pollution in London. They are all too stupid to see the long term effects and costs pollution brings.
It’s a sad reflection on society when people won’t do (or not do) things because they cannot see an immediate effect.
All 3 parties need to get their act together, or there will be no point anyone having children as the human race will be exitinct in the next 100 years.
Even Thomas has admitted that Ken was basically the ONLY public figure who followed his beliefs – even though it made him un-popular in the end.
This all comes down to public opinion – all authorities are now seen as liars and con men, just at the point when they need us to believe them.
Lies always come back to haunt you in the end.
Goodbye everyone – see you at the pearly gates where I will be telling you I told you so!