Havering MPs fury at Sadiq Khan's move to expand ULEZ

The move, announced last week, means motorists across Havering whose vehicles do not comply with emissions standards will have to pay a £12.50 daily charge.

City Hall has said the expansion will tackle air pollution, the climate emergency and congestion.

READ MORE: ULEZ: What area does the Ultra Low Emission Zone cover?

Mr Khan felt the larger ULEZ will mean outer Londoners can "breathe cleaner air and live healthier lives".

But the borough's members of Parliament are furious at the decision, which was taken despite 59 per cent of respondees to a consultation on the expansion saying it should not be implemented.

Labour MP for Dagenham and Rainham, Jon Cruddas, said he is "deeply disappointed" at Mr Khan's decision.

"I understand the pressing need to improve air quality and public health, but this scheme will be another unwelcome hit on working people in areas like Dagenham and Rainham. 

Jon Cruddas is deeply disappointed with the ULEZ expansion (Image: Andrew Achilleos)

"The Tories have crashed our economy leaving thousands of people struggling to put food on the table and heat their homes, and against this backdrop those same people will now struggle to get to work."

Mr Cruddas believes the move should have been delayed until the cost-of-living crisis was over.

"Dagenham and Rainham is home to many low-income workers who rely on their personal vehicles.

"The public transport infrastructure just isn’t there to support this policy. I will continue to challenge this in the strongest possible terms over the coming weeks and months."

City Hall has pledged to improve bus routes in outer London, including in Havering.

It has said this will see better links between Harold Hill and Upminster.

READ MORE: What is the ULEZ and why is it expanding in 2023?

The ULEZ expansion will also be accompanied by a new £110m scrappage scheme which City Hall said will support those on lower incomes, disabled Londoners, charities, small businesses and sole traders.

This will include the option for car owners who successfully use it to get up to two annual free bus passes.

But Hornchurch and Upminster MP Julia Lopez felt the expansion will bring "financial hardship" to families and businesses in outer London.

"Outer London is not the same as inner London", she said.

"Havering does not have anywhere near the same public transport provision as central boroughs and there is far greater reliance on cars to get around.

Julia Lopez MP (Image: April Roach)

"This is especially true for those with disabilities and the elderly. Many vulnerable households, who simply cannot afford to replace older vehicles, will now be faced by this daily tax of £12.50."

A reversal to a large number of planned bus route cuts in inner London was also announced last week after a consultation.

On the u-turn, Mr Khan said: "The strength of feeling across the capital was clear to me and I was adamant that I would explore every avenue available to me to save as many buses as possible."

But Ms Lopez feels that the ULEZ expansion shows his "unwillingness" to listen to outer Londoners.

Her fellow Tory MP, Andrew Rosindell, accused Mr Khan of being uninterested in Romford and said the ULEZ announcement was "a stab in the back" for the town and Havering as a whole.

The Romford MP told the Recorder: "Politicians should be doing everything in their power to search for solutions to the cost-of-living crisis, but this does the complete opposite and is a catastrophic blow to the taxpayer.  

"He (Mr Khan) must reverse this decision."

Romford MP Andrew Rosindell (Image: Andrew Rosindell)

The Mayor of London's office did not respond to a request for comment.

Announcing the expansion last week, Mr Khan said: “The rising cost of living has been a key consideration for me. 

"That’s why I’m announcing that we will be introducing our biggest scrappage scheme yet - £110m – to support Londoners on lower incomes, disabled Londoners, small businesses and charities to scrap or retrofit their non-compliant vehicles."

He admitted the ULEZ expansion was not an easy decision.

"The easy thing for me would have been to kick the can down the road. But in the end, public health comes before political expediency.

"As mayor, I’m not willing to turn a blind eye because it’s clear the cost of inaction – to our economy, to livelihoods, to the environment and the health of Londoners – would be a far too high a price to pay. 

London mayor Sadiq Khan decided to expand the ULEZ across the capital (Image: PA)

"Expanding ULEZ is the right choice for our city and something that I know will help us to continue building a better, greener, fairer and healthier London for everyone.”   

The expansion is due to come into effect on August 29 next year.