The furious backlash against Sadiq Khan’s ULEZ scheme won’t be limited to voters in London
Labour’s eco tax on drivers is last straw
IF YOU think the furious backlash against Sadiq Khan’s Ulez scheme will be limited to voters in London, think again.
The disastrous Labour Mayor’s hated emissions policy in the capital is not the only battlefront in the war on British motorists.
Drivers in Birmingham, Bradford and Newcastle have their own versions of the Ulez zone.
And as we reveal today many of them are rightly seething too.
They see Clean-Air fees as a grasping unfair tax on the low paid who are reliant on their vehicles but can’t afford new ones.
And they won’t vote for any party imposing it on them.
A grass roots rebellion against the spiralling costs of green policies is fast becoming a major battleground of next year’s election.
Labour’s eco drive is causing a crisis in the party’s ranks.
Sir Keir Starmer knows that the High Court’s backing for the London rollout of Ulez will cost him crucial votes, and that could be repeated across the country.
But the Tories must also get their house in order.
The Government’s ban on new petrol and diesel cars by 2030 and on new hybrids by 2035 is madness and must be delayed.
To many voters this tax feels like the final straw.
As Birmingham watchmaker Trevor Jennings says: “They’ll be charging you £5 to get out of bed soon.”
Don’t give them any ideas, Trevor.
Arrests, not words
POLICE forces who pander to political correctness but turn a blind eye to real crime have been a disgrace for too long.
The Home Secretary has now told Chief Constables to probe all crimes that have a reasonable lead in a return to common sense policing.
It’s a welcome move by Suella Braverman.
But we won’t hold our breath.
Police chiefs have been ordered to get tough before.
Last autumn they were hauled into No10 and told to clamp down on the Just Stop Oil clowns causing chaos on our roads. Yet despite pressure from the PM it’s still going on.
And only last week South Wales police were criticised for taking part in a Pride-themed bus tour with a drag act called Coco-Aine.
Good luck with the new push Home Secretary.
But crime victims need results as well as strong words.