The High Court has rejected a bid to stop London Mayor Sadiq Khan from expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) scheme to the capital’s outer boroughs.
A High Court judge has ruled against five Conservative-run councils who launched legal action against the extension, which should now come into force on 29 August, unless Mr Khan opts to delay it.
The flagship policy from the Mayor, which is already in place in inner and central London, will mean those driving older, higher polluting petrol or diesel vehicles will have to pay £12.50 every day they enter the zone.
It generally only applies to petrol vehicles made before 2006 and diesel ones made before 2014, when tougher emissions standards came into effect.
The proposal to expand the scheme has been controversial, with oppoents saying it will be a “bitter disappointment” to motorists, hitting the poorest and most vulnerable families hardest during a cost of living crisis.
Mr Khan has said the aim is to solve an “urgent public health crisis” of air pollution which can contribute to and exacerbate asthma and lung conditions.
Hillingdon, Bexley, Bromley and Harrow in London, plus Surrey County Council, claimed Mr Khan had exceeded his legal powers with such a large expansion of the scheme.
They also claimed public consultation was inadequate and not enough information had been shared over the scrappage scheme associated with Ulez.
However, Mr Justice Swift found against the councils on all three points. He found that Mr Khan’s expansion was within his legal powers, and that while the consultation could have been presented with “greater depth”, there was “sufficient” information in the consultation, including on the scrappage scheme.
Mr Khan said the “landmark decision” was “good news as it means we can proceed with cleaning up the air in outer London on 29 August”.
He said the decision to expand Ulez was “very difficult”, and not one he took lightly, adding: “The Ulez has already reduced toxic nitrogen dioxide air pollution by nearly half in central London and a fifth in inner London. The coming expansion will see five million more Londoners being able to breathe cleaner air.
“Air pollution is an urgent public health crisis – our children are growing up with stunted lungs and it is linked to a host of serious conditions, from heart disease to cancer and dementia.”
Mr Khan said he would expand the scrappage scheme – which offers grants to vehicle owners if they exchange it for a compliant one – to nearly five million families who receive child benefits and all small businesses with up to 50 employees.
The scheme means eligible people can trade in their old cars in return for £2,000, or get up to £1,000 for scrapping a motorcycle. For wheelchair-accessible vehicles there is a payment of £5,000 to scrap or retrofit to the Ulez standard. Eligible drivers who trade in a van can receive between £5,000 and £9,500.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer recently urged Mr Khan to “reflect” on the expansion of the scheme, following Labour’s loss in the Uxbridge by-election, which he blamed on the proposal. The Mayor has so far rebuffed calls from some Labour figures to delay the rollout set for next month, though he says he will “continue to look at new ideas to support Londoners”.
The coalition of councils that challenged the expansion said it was “hugely disappointed” by the High Court’s decision, and questioned whether Mr Khan had the “moral right” to implement the policy following the by-election loss last week.
Colin Smith, leader of Bromley Council, said today’s decision could not be disguised as “anything other than bitter disappointment for motorists in general, traders who will now have to change jobs, and most desperately of all, people who will no longer be able to support vital care networks for vulnerable people across the whole of outer London in particular.
“To all of them as well as the legion of families who will now have to trade in perfectly good cars at significant cost they can’t really afford, for a newer vehicle they don’t want or need, I can only say sorry.
“We’ve tried our very hardest to protect you but ultimately, today’s judgment does mean that the Mayor has taken another step closer to getting his way.”
Susan Hall, member of the London Assembly and the Conservative mayoral candidate set to challenge Mr Khan next May, said the plans would have a “devastating” impact on families and businesses across the city.
She said: “If I am elected mayor, I will stop the Ulez expansion on day one.”
It is not clear how many vehicles in outer London will be hit by the new charge. Mr Khan has claimed that nine out of 10 cars seen driving in outer London on an average day are already compliant so won’t be hit by the scheme.
However, figures the BBC reported on obtained from a Freedom of Information request to Transport for London showed one in six cars registered in outer London did not meet Ulez standards.
Figures obtained by the RAC under an FOI request indicated that across Greater London, there could be up to 700,000 cars that do not conform to the Ulez standard.
Reacting to the judgment, RAC head of roads policy Nicholas Lyes said the Mayor and the Government needed to get around the table to help implement the new zone.
He said the “scale of the challenge” of getting drivers into compliant cars could not be underestimated, and he called for additional support for keyworkers in London and in nearby counties, to help them afford the cleaner cars.
“While the principle of cleaning up London’s air is the right one, it has come at a time where drivers can ill afford to replace their vehicles during a cost of living crisis,” Mr Lyes said.
“This is being made by worse by new evidence which shows drivers are having to pay far more than they should have to purchase a compliant vehicle on the second-hand car market.
“We’d very much like to see additional support given to certain keyworkers, both inside the capital and in neighbouring counties, who depend on their vehicles to help them switch to cleaner ones as affordably as possible.”
Richard Burge of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry called for a “grace period” in the scheme for Londoners who have ordered Ulez-compliant vehicles.
