Sadiq Khan has asked the Prime Minister to help fund his latest green initiative in advance of the planned expansion of the ultra low emission zone.
The Mayor of London has requested that Rishi Sunak match the £110 million he has set aside for the capital’s scrappage scheme.
Khan asked the Prime Minister in a letter to provide financial assistance to people driving the most polluting vehicles into the capital from places like Surrey and Kent.
Khan intends to expand the Ulez to cover all of London beginning August 29 in order to improve air quality. Non-compliant vehicles will be fined £12.50 per day.
In a letter, the Mayor of London urged Sunak to “become a doer, rather than a delayer, when it comes to climate action”.
Khan said other areas have received Government funding for similar schemes, such as Greater Manchester (£120million), Bristol (£42million), Birmingham (£38million) and Bradford (£30million) – but London and the home counties “have not received even a penny of support”.
The mayor wrote: “I urge you to use some of the unexpected £30billion windfall in the public finances to not only match the funding allocated for scrappage in London, but to introduce a targeted scrappage scheme that provides help to those based in the home counties.”
He went on: “London, the South East and the East of England make net contributions to the Treasury every year, and Londoners pay £500million of vehicle excise yearly, which is then spent on maintaining roads in other parts of the country.
“For our regions to pay in so much and not be helped to reduce carbon emissions and make our air safer to breathe is unfair and doesn’t make sense.”
Khan wrote that London is “in the grip of a deadly public health crisis”, with toxic air “causing the premature deaths of an estimated 4,000 Londoners every year”.
Earlier this month, the Mayor of London refused to use any of his own windfall – £188 million more than expected – to fund the scrappage scheme.
Instead, he chose to use £130 million of the funds to help fund free school meals for London primary school students.