Councils tell High Court mayor lacks powers to extend ULEZ

Five councils have argued in the High Court that London’s mayor “lacks the legal powers” to extend the capital’s ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ).

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, announced in November, 2022, that the ULEZ will be expanded across the whole of the capital from August 29, 2023, to three times its current size.

Drivers of affected vehicles who do not pay the £12.50 daily charge will face a fine of up to £160.

To comply with the ULEZ, petrol cars and vans must be Euro 4 and diesel cars and vans must be Euro 6. Motorcycles and mopeds must be Euro 3 to comply.

The original ULEZ scheme was introduced in April 2019 to cover central London before being expanded to the North/South Circular boundaries in October 2021.

The mayor’s legal team say that the scheme is “entirely lawful”, and it will improve London's air quality.

The High Court also heard yesterday (Tuesday, July 4) that claims made by Transport for London (TfL) that nine out of 10 cars already complied with ULEZ standards in outer London were based on data from just over 100 cameras.

However, with some 1,156 ANPR cameras gathering data in inner London and just 106 covering the whole of outer London, this was not made clear during a consultation on the scheme.

Legal counsel for Bexley, Bromley, Harrow, Hillingdon and Surrey councils argued that, if it had, consultees might have concluded forecast compliance rates from such a small number of cameras were "unlikely to be reliable given the size of the area being covered".

The councils’ barrister also said the mayor's plans for a £110 million scrappage scheme, to provide grants to people to support them getting rid of non-compliant vehicles, were also unlawful because a "buffer zone" for "non-Londoners" affected by the extended charging zone was not considered.

Legal counsel for TfL and the Mayor said that London's mayors had used powers to order changes to emissions zones rules in the capital on many occasions.

He also added that consultation materials were clear, detailed and provided more than ample information to enable an “intelligent response and satisfy the requirements of fairness for consultations”.

The hearing is due to conclude today (Wednesday, July 5) and the judge is expected to give his ruling at a later date.

Industry boss calls for ULEZ delay

The boss of the Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) is warning that the expanded ULEZ could become no-go areas for the building trade.

John Newcomb, chief executive of the BMF, said: ““Our concern is that Greater London becomes a no-go area for a significant proportion of the trade.

“Trade customers could choose to go elsewhere outside Greater London to buy materials and products to avoid ULEZ charges, and tradespeople, particularly SMEs, opt not to accept new work within the boundary.

“As a result, we will see fewer local firms available for end-customers to choose from when seeking to have work done on their property, which will in turn affect waiting times and prices.

“This will also directly affect sales turnover at merchants, with consequences for the amounts of stock held and staffing levels.”

The BMF represent major builders’ merchants such as Travis Perkins – who sell materials used in construction – as well as a host of SMEs and manufacturers along the supply chain.